Golden Arrows
by Zabbie Q
Summary: While stuck in the Cinderella storybook, Reika tries her best to represent Prince Charming correctly. Unfortunately, Joker shows up.
1. Chapter 1

_"Don't you ever, don't you ever lower yourself, forgetting all your standards."_

~ "Prince Charming", Adam and the Ants.

* * *

Reika had always strived to remain calm and cool in tough situations, even before she had joined the Precure warriors. When circumstances called for split-second decisions, level-headedness allowed her to spot the correct path in a tangled web of wild options. However, Reika acknowledged even the best path forgers found themselves in moments which overwhelmed their senses.

For example, she could be in the artificial world of a magical storybook, Märchenland's own "Origin of Cinderella," where even the smallest deviation would affect every version of Cinderella in the known universe. Cast in the role of the Prince, she could find herself up against the three evil generals of the Bad End Kingdom, who were now the Wicked Step-family and who had chased off all the other guests to insure the Prince would marry one of them. She could also be without her Smile Pact, the magical device which transformed her into Cure Beauty and gave her ice powers. Seeing she had no way to defend herself, she could then remember she was a skinny fourteen-year-old girl outnumbered by a sharp-toothed wolf, a massive red _oni_, and an old witch who were dead set on dragging her to the altar, literally if necessary.

Finding herself in just such an overwhelming situation, when Wolfrun, Akaoni, and Majorina simultaneously lunged for her to claim the first waltz, Reika followed the first course of action which popped into her frightened mind. She ducked under Akaoni's muscular elbow and darted out the gilded arched door.

Flushed and flustered, she sprinted down the passages, past portraits and vases, around columns and gilded arches, under chandeliers and up short flights of steps, trying desperately to remember the correct route to the palace's entrance. Was it this one that led to the grand staircase outside? No, that led up to a watchtower, where she'd have no escape.

She ducked around another corner. That group of paintings looked familiar. She pressed forward.

"_Someone save me! Someone save me!_" she wailed, hoping one of the prince's many servants and guards would hear her cries.

No one came.

Too late she realized the generals had probably chased them away along with the party guests.

Oh, why did she leave her Smile Pact strapped to her school bag? And why did she leave her school bag back in the classroom at school instead of taking it with her when the Precure had hurried to talk to Candy and Pop about the magical Cinderella book? And why did she stop going on morning jogs with her brother?

A stitch grew in her side. If she didn't get to safety, she'd be forced into a Bad End with one of her abhorrent suitors. Every Prince and Cinderella would be forever separated.

Just as she turned a sharp corner — just as she passed an alcove with a statue — a gloved hand grabbed her wrist and yanked, swinging Reika nose-first into a plum waistcoat. The newcomer spun her into the alcove, shielding her with his body. Reika buried herself against him.

The generals stampeded right past them.

"You can't run from us, Ouji-sama!"

"Come back and face your Bad End, or we'll have to get _really_ mean!"

Reika gulped, staying stone still.

But the trampling footfalls faded down the wing and down a flight of marble stairs. Sweet, sweet silence fell once more upon the hall, and the gold trim of the walls and windows sparkled beneath the rows of chandeliers as if nothing had happened.

At last Reika relaxed, sighing.

"Thank you very much," she murmured to her rescuer, pushing against him to step out of his protective embrace.

But the stranger held firm. His thin arms tightened around her, pressing her close.

Frowning, Reika raised her head.

Her blood froze.

Two black voids stared back at her from a half-mask whiter than the powdered wig on her rescuer's head. Sharp incisors glittered in the alcove shadow as their owner parted his lips into a broad smile.

"Joker!" she gasped, jolting in his arms. She struggled to break free, but he kept her pinned.

His tenebrous eyes slitted, his mask as expressive as a normal face. Right then, he looked amused — satisfied — in complete control of the situation.

"Good evening, Ouji-sama," he said as if greeting an acquaintance on the street. "Looks like I got here just in time."

She pushed against him, struggling. He could break her every bone if he chose, but she would not crumple and give into her fate.

"Let go," she ordered.

He laughed softly before he looked down the passage after the three generals. His smirk morphed to a sharp leer.

"Those fools can fly _and_ teleport, but they chased you on foot," he muttered. "I'll deal with them later. For now, we have to get you ready, Ouji-sama."

Reika glared at him. "Ready for wh— ?" she tried to say, but he lurched backwards, hauling her up and wrapping an arm around her waist.

He snapped his fingers, and before Reika could gasp, the alcove and hallway melted away. Immediately, Reika found herself once more in the elegant baroque-style ballroom, which had long mullioned windows, reflective floors, sparkling sconces with cheerful candles, and gilded molding.

She looked wildly at Joker in disbelief. He merely lowered her, releasing her at last. Reika sprang away from him, clutching her palpitating chest.

Although Joker was just a single person, he was more dangerous than the other three generals combined — and he had more than enough reason to target Reika first in his master's war against the Precure. Reika had fought him in the Bad End Kingdom, and she had retrieved the Cure Decor he had stolen, which had allowed the Precure to gain a new power through the Pegasus. The last time she had seen him, he had trapped the Precure in a Ball of Neglect, an alternate dimension where they had forgotten their duties and real lives. It had taken all five Precure, with the aid of the Royal Clock, to defeat his Akanbe.

But there weren't five Precure here. There wasn't even one — not without her Smile Pact. And nobody else knew of her danger.

_I'll never see my family again_, she thought, waiting for his attack, vainly wishing she hadn't left her Pact in her classroom. One mistake — one innocent oversight — had cost her everything.

But Joker stayed where he was, floating a foot in the air. He was young, tall and thin, with a pointed chin and elfin ears adorned with a pearl stud on each lobe. His normal jester costume had been swapped for a plum footman livery consisting of a simple but appropriate coat, a waistcoat and breeches with a short white cravat around his neck and white stockings. As he watched Reika, he calmly slipped off the powdered wig and tossed it to the side, where it vanished into thin air. His voluminous hair, normally crafted to resemble a massive Fool's hat made of yellow, red, and blue points, had been pulled back into a less than historically accurate ponytail. His normal baubles still hung from the tips.

Reika watched him, not daring to flee. However, the longer the silence stretched, the more her determination as a warrior returned. She lifted her chin, staring him down as if she didn't notice how hard her heart pounded against her rib cage.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, more calmly than she felt.

"That he-fairy asked me the same question earlier," he remarked as if sharing an amusing anecdote at a party.

Reika stiffened. "What did you do to Pop-san?" she demanded with cold fury.

"Nothing, nothing, Ouji-sama," he hummed. "It's more fun to think of him gritting his widdle teeth and glaring so impotently at the pictures, wondering what I could possibly be up to."

She narrowed her eyes, a bit of heat seeping through her icy facade. "Which is?" she asked carefully.

His smile twitched into a clear smirk, but he broke his gaze, surveying the ballroom. He chortled, gesturing upward.

"My, my, my. Would you look at that!"

Opposite to the great ballroom doors, a turquoise throne sat upon a gilded dias with carpeted steps. Three different layers of drawn red curtains lined it on either side like in a theater. Above the dias, in a gold frame with a blue background, the calligraphy character of _Michi_ — the Path — overlooked the opulent dance floor.

"Your handiwork, I trust?" grinned Joker.

Reika held his gaze with all the defiance her tense nerves would allow her. During her exploration of her temporary domicile, she had found quills and parchment in the desk of the Prince's study. It had taken her a few tries with the unfamiliar utensils, but she had etched the _Michi_ character to the best of her abilities and had gotten the palace staff to hang it above the throne. She had hoped to use it as a visual aid to help her understand the Prince's character while she danced at the ball. After all, he searched for the best path for himself and his kingdom, which included finding a worthy bride to share his throne and to be the mother of the next ruler.

"It serves its purpose," she said evasively.

Joker broke into a high laugh. "Taking liberties with this defenseless world, are we? You rascal," he said with a mixture of mischief and admiration. He spun in a fluid twirl, landing, and sauntered toward the dais, gazing leisurely at the calligraphy.

"Tsk, tsk. What a naughty little princeling you're turning into, Cure Beauty." He twisted his torso toward her and shook a long finger at her. "_You could get in trou-ble_," he sang.

She frowned. "What do you mean?"

He made a sharp pirouette which set his colorful ponytail dancing, and he held his slim arms akimbo. "I'm assuming Märchenland's 'Origin of Cinderella' book is heavily inspired by the Charles Perrault version with the fairy godmother, yes?"

"It would appear so," she replied, narrowing her eyes. She didn't fully know how Origin books worked, especially since the basic plot of Cinderella could be traced back to the first century B.C., but she didn't need to understand magic to know she had to protect this tale from the ilk of the Bad End Kingdom.

Joker gave that throaty, superior laugh of his which sounded like he was humming. He bared his serrated teeth in a wide, sickle-like smile.

"For the sake of argument, suppose this is inspired by Perrault-san's version. That was published in 1697, so we can assume the spell caster who created the 'Origin' book meant for this world to be set roughly around that time period. You with me so far?"

"Yes. And what of it?"

His face glittered. "What year was the Sakoku Edict passed?"

"In 1635— _Oh_." Her heart sank to her toes.

Japan would have been in its self-imposed isolation during that time. A European prince would not have been able to hang calligraphy in his ballroom. Perhaps if his country had trade negotiations with the Dutch, he might've been exposed to a limited amount of Japanese arts, but not when the art in question was just her own amateur penmanship, done with a quill and inkwell.

Joker planted his hands over his heart. "Power corrupts," he said saintly. "Even Cure Beauty's noble heart isn't immune to temptation. You're an inspiration to degenerates everywhere."

Reika gritted her teeth, stoutly trying to ignore the flush which spread over her. "Anachronistic or not, it's an inoffensive change compared to what your people wanted to do."

"Indeed." For a moment his black eyes seemed to flash red, but he blinked and formed a dry smirk. Touching his cheek, he asked, "If they had captured you, which one would you've hoped to marry?"

She merely narrowed her eyes, refusing to dignify that with a response.

Joker shook his head. "If their plan was to give this story a Bad End, a faster, more practical way would've been to kill the Prince."

Reika drew back a step.

Joker's eyes narrowed merrily. "If I wanted you dead, I would've just taken you to the tallest tower and tossed you."

She couldn't deny the truth of that statement, but it did nothing to loosen the knot in her stomach. "So why bring me here?" she asked softly.

"I'm a sucker for theatrics," he replied, "and I think we're going to have a great show in a few minutes." He looked toward the elegant clock on the ballroom's gilded wall.

Reika followed his gaze. It wasn't even nine o'clock, so he couldn't be referring to Cinderella-Miyuki's midnight departure.

_But Miyuki-san and the others don't know he's here_, she remembered. _They don't know what they'll be walking into._

Reika's breath grew shallow. She took a small step toward the arched doorway, but Joker spoke again.

"I also wanted to give you _this_." At the last word he snapped his fingers.

A familiar round object appeared with a flash of light, floating in front of Reika. She wanted to cry with relief to see her pink Smile Pact in one piece, but as she reached for it, she hesitated, shooting Joker a wary look.

"I don't have the power to damage it, if that's what you're wondering," he said knowingly.

She plucked the Pact from the air and turned it over in her hands. It resembled a large makeup compact. The golden heart insignia of Märchenland sat in the center of a pink-and-white bow atop the dome lid, and magenta lines formed a cross on a light-pink background with a bead-like design. Everything looked in order. Even the clasp, which was in the shape of a magenta bow with a blue gem in the center, seemed intact.

She inspected the inside. The necessary Cure Decor for her transformation, which resembled a blue four-point diamond on a blue bow, sat in its place of honor in the heart-shaped slot above another golden heart and the spectrum of tiny magic jewels. Nothing out of place. Not even a smudge on the mirror.

Reika glanced again at Joker. Why would he give her back her precious protection against him?

As if to answer her silent inquiry, Joker formed a sweet look. "Go ahead. Transform, Ouji-sama," he cajoled. "I bet children around the world would love to see Prince Charming turn into a teenage girl with ice powers. I think it'd be an improvement, personally."

There it was.

Reika set her mouth, refusing to reply. She would not concede his point out loud, but anything she did could affect the other Princes of the many versions, which could have untold consequences for their marriages and kingdoms. It behooved her to take every precaution not to injure or tamper with their lives.

But if she needed to act in self-defense, she hoped they would all understand.

"Then that's what you came here to do, isn't it?" she asked carefully. "To alter this tale and give it a Bad End."

"What Bad End?" he challenged with a snort. "Any change I make can be undone with a second visit into this world, even if I would stoop to such small-minded tactics. No, no, Ouji-sama. I like to look at the bigger picture."

"Which is?"

His grin widened, but instead of replying he took to the air with a small jump and glided to one of the long windows.

"Lovely little kingdom you have, Ouji-sama," he commented. "Have you explored your domain at all?"

"I haven't left the palace," she said stiffly.

His reflection in the window stretched its grin. "Such a shame. The village at the bottom of the hill is quite delightful." He looked over his shoulder at her. "Why don't you have fun? You can always come back into the book and have a do-over."

"Out of the question," she retorted. "That'd be irresponsible and just plain cruel to the many Cinderella fairies in Märchenland."

He scoffed softly. "What have they ever done for you?"

"Plenty," she insisted.

Cendrillon, the Cinderella of Charles Perrault's version, had let Nao and Akane take turns driving her pumpkin carriage and talked with Miyuki for over an hour. Yayoi, an avid lover of ghost stories and strange things, had been allowed to see the special hazel tree which belonged to Aschenputtel of the Grimms' version. Reika herself had spent some time asking Rhodopis and Ye Xian of the Egyptian and Chinese versions questions about their respective historical cultures.

"And even if they hadn't done anything for us," continued Reika, "I'd still do my best to portray their husbands in a respectful way."

Joker twirled to face her. "Don't be so strict with yourself, Ouji-sama. Not all versions will be harmed, only those written after Märchenland's 'Origins' spell was cast. The older stories will be spared."

"That doesn't make it better."

"Guess there's no pleasing you," he said, feigning exasperation.

"It's not about my own desires," she replied. "It's about protecting smiles. Each Cinderella loves her Prince, and each Prince loves his Cinderella."

"If you think so," he said, before his wicked grin returned. "Since you're so adamant about keeping things as they are, then you condone every last word of 'Cinderella'? Like the Prince gambling his citizens' entire future based on a girl's looks and shoe size without knowing her name? You feel no inclination to set a better example for future generations at all."

"It's a story with a pumpkin carriage and a fairy godmother. Even children understand it's not meant to be realistic," she said coolly. "As to the Prince, my mother experienced koi no yokan when she met Father. They've been married twenty-three years now. Not that I expect someone like you to understand that."

He covered his heart, pretending to be wounded.

"Just because I think 'Cinderella' is a ridiculous story doesn't mean I completely discount courtship," he said. "Pierrot-sama has had his share of worthy brides over the centuries. In fact, the Greek goddess Aphrodite-sama helped him with his last two empresses."

Reika blinked, not sure if she had heard him correctly. "Say that again?"

"It's a famous tale," he replied. "Remind me to tell it someday."

As creatures like Pegasus and the Phoenix helped the Precure during their evil-cleansing Royal Rainbow Burst, it was not a stretch to imagine Aphrodite existed. However...

"I find that hard to believe," she frowned. "Why would any goddess of love help the Emperor of Evil?"

"Because Pierrot-sama is smart enough to stay on her good side," replied Joker, smugly conjuring a small red rose. "Even Eros-sama favors murderers from time to time, if you know anything about the west wind Zephyrus who killed Hyacinthus for choosing Apollo over him. Eros-sama appealed on Zephyrus's behalf since it was a crime motivated by love, and Zephyrus from that day on became his servant."

Reika raised an eyebrow, wishing she knew more about Greek mythology to tell if he were lying or not.

"So you see," continued Joker, "even those of us with sad histories are not excluded from those sweeter feelings, no matter what those Märchenland snobs tell you in order to maintain their imagined high ground. Even Earth's artists used to love portraying Pierrot-sama wooing beautiful women — one of the few positive things humans have ever done for him."

"Well," said Reika doubtfully, "to love someone is something fabulous, but if you really believed that, then the other generals— "

She meant to say "then the other generals wouldn't sneer at love and friendship all the time," but Joker suddenly straightened, putting a hand to his pointed ear. He broke into a gleeful laugh and gestured toward the arched doorway opposite of the Michi character.

"Speaking of love, by the pricking of my thumb, your Cinderella this way comes. Best not keep her waiting, Ouji-sama."

* * *

The echoes of clanking glass slippers and panting arose from the hall. Reika adjusted her coat and stepped toward the entrance, feeling the weight of her Smile Pact in her pocket.

The gasps and grunts grew louder, and Miyuki and Yayoi burst into the ballroom. Both girls doubled over, panting. Miyuki gripped her chest, coughing a little. Her pink ensemble certainly did Cinderella credit, from the sparkling tiara and huge pink bows on her magenta pigtails down to the full skirt trimmed with ruffles. Yayoi, dressed as the good witch, gripped her flying broom in one hand and cradled Candy against her with the other. The little fairy wore some kind of lizard costume with her tiny, milky face peeking out between its teeth. Two mice gripped Yayoi's shoulders, a green one with a ponytail and an orange one with an X-shaped hair clip in her long bangs.

"We-We made it," Miyuki grinned tiredly, raising her sweaty face. "And those stupid generals were knocked across the river like a soccer ball—" She stopped short and did a double take.

"You!" she cried, pointing at Joker.

"It's rude to stare," he replied, retreating to one of the walls and leaning between two tall windows. He folded his arms but then gestured to Reika with a mock-formal flourish. "Don't let me keep you, Ouji-sama."

Reika cleared her throat, keeping her head erect. With her stomach knotting, she could not shake off the feeling she was about to do something that benefited Joker somehow, yet she had no choice but to stick to the story.

She bowed regally to Miyuki and held out her hand. "Would you like to dance with me?" she asked, managing to smile.

Miyuki shot Joker a wary look and gave Reika a deep, ladylike nod. "I would be delighted, Ouji-sama," she said, laying her fingers atop Reika's.

As Reika led Miyuki to the center of the dancefloor, Yayoi moved to the wall opposite from Joker, hugging Candy protectively as if she expected the jester to kidnap her for yet a third time. Nao and Akane clung to Yayoi for balance, and while their faces were too small for Reika to see at a distance, their body language said they'd quickly attack Joker, regardless of their size, if he came too close.

Joker did not even acknowledge the others. "Would you prefer a historically accurate dance, Ouji-sama?" he called cheekily to Reika. "Allemande? Canarie? Gavotte? Forlana? That one was popular when Emperor Pierrot-sama still toured with his theatre troupe."

Reika hesitated. Although she knew Joker was just messing with her, his question still caught her off guard.

"Uh... yes... well..."

"Try a loure," he chirped. "It's slow enough. Can't have Cinderella tripping at the ball, can we?"

He snapped his fingers, and invisible violins and wind instruments started a soft, dreamy melody. Reika appreciated he didn't give them some wild song, but that only begged the question: what was he waiting for?

Miyuki tugged her sleeve, pulling her from her conflicted thoughts. Reika nodded and held Miyuki by the hands, which were adorned with white opera gloves and jewelry. Did the boy put his right hand or left on the girl's waist? She decided right made a little more sense and adjusted her position, taking Miyuki's hand into her left. Wishing she had thought to ask one of the Prince's servants for a quick dance lesson, she tried a gentle kind of footwork, stepping to one side, then the next, slowly making a circle. She hoped as long as she made a good effort, none of the real Princes would suddenly discover they had forgotten how to waltz.

She shot a look toward the framed _Michi_ character. Even if it wasn't historically accurate, it gave her courage.

"What's _he_ doing here?" Miyuki whispered as Reika guided her in a loop.

"I have a feeling we'll find out soon," Reika returned grimly. "Do you have your Smile Pact with you?"

"Yes."

"Good."

But Joker had effortlessly defeated them all in minutes the first time they fought. If she remembered correctly, Yayoi had also left her Smile Pact back at school, and even if Nao and Akane had grabbed theirs, they were mice. Did they even have a chance with just two Precure?

"By the way," Miyuki said, brightening a little, "that's a cute outfit, Reika-chan—oops!" She giggled. "I mean, Reika-_ouji_."

It was so in character for Miyuki, Reika smiled in spite of her nerves.

"Thank you," she answered, glancing at her regal attire. Fringed epaulettes sat upon a long, comfortable, open, blue coat with a yellow trim, which in turn covered a blue silk waistcoat and a milk-blue shirt with ruffled cuffs peeking out from her coat's sleeves. A ruffled cravat adorned her neck, held by a pretty sapphire brooch. Blue breeches above knee-high stockings and grayish shoes. The Cinderella book had caused the midnight-blue ponytail that bounced against her back to be much longer than normal, which had to be bound with a large white bow and a second smaller tie.

"I invited you to dance, but I actually have no experience in dancing," she admitted, looking down at their feet. Miyuki's glass slippers peeked out from beneath the pink skirt as they swayed, and Reika tried not to step on them.

"What should I do?" she asked sheepishly.

"Don't worry," Miyuki beamed back. "I've never danced before, but it'll all work out. Let's just try to have some fun for right now, Ouji-sama."

Reika nodded. "Alright."

She stepped back, twirling Miyuki just fast enough that her skirt fanned out but without making her lose balance. Miyuki tittered. Reika smiled at her enthusiasm, but she tensed as a hand tapped her shoulder.

"May I cut in?" Joker asked, leaning over her.

Reika whirled around, holding her arm in front of Miyuki. Miyuki gripped her elbow, equally protective.

"Cinderella doesn't dance with a creep at the ball," Miyuki retorted.

A gleeful spark danced across Joker's face. "I wholeheartedly agree."

Before either girl could react, he lashed out and grabbed hold of Reika. She only had time to gasp before he hauled her against him, pressing her close.

"Joker — stop!" Miyuki cried.

Yayoi bolted toward them, releasing Candy. Nao and Akane clung to her shoulders as she summoned her magic wand. The top had a gloved hand frozen in a peace sign, and it sparked with electricity as she drew circles in the air.

"You let Reika-chan go!" she commanded.

Joker barely looked at her. "Yeah right."

With that he leapt, and the floor plummeted away from them. Reika clutched him without meaning to. Where Cure Beauty could handle such a height and speed, Aoki Reika had to deal with her stomach somersaulting. Yayoi dropped her wand in surprise, and the discharge hit a tall window instead, shattering the glass.

"Now, about that dance," Joker giggled, spinning them enough for her linked legs to rise with the angular momentum.

Reika gritted her teeth. "Is this your plan, to drop me after all?"

"No, no, no," he said. "A different fate awaits you, Beauty-ouji. Just you wait."

Below them, Yayoi produced her flying broom from thin air and hopped on, taking off after the two. But every time she got close, Joker teleported out of reach; the perpetual change of position happened so fast Reika squeezed her eyes tight, burying her face into his shoulder.

"Hey, Ouji-sama," Joker whispered, slowing as he looped around a chandelier. "Guess what."

Reika opened one glaring eye.

"Remember what I said about Pierrot-sama staying in the favor of gods? I've followed his example all my life. So when Eros-sama needed a favor done by a Bad Ender, I assisted."

She gritted her teeth. "So?"

"_So_, Cure Beauty, Eros-sama rewarded me handsomely for my services."

He shifted her onto his side to free his other hand. He reached into his plum coat and withdrew a glistening golden rod.

No, an arrow. With a heart-shaped head.

Reika tensed.

"Pretty, no? I thought you might appreciate them, being an archer yourself. Eros-sama gave me two of these, and I have such an excellent notion on what to do with the first one."

He looked straight into her eyes.

She lurched back. "Joker, don't — "

Before she could cry out, he swung his arm up — and rammed the arrow into her back, right into her heart.

Reika shuddered in his arms, gasping with shock. But instead of pain, a delightful warmth shot into her, causing her eyes to spring wide open. She tried to close them in time, but as the arrow melted into her, she knew it was too late. Bliss overtook her, mingling with a bewitching tenderness as she stared at her newly realized beloved.

How could she have ever hated him before?

"Reika-chan!" gasped Miyuk from the floor.

"What did you do to her?!" cried Yayoi, trying to guide her broom close.

Joker merely tossed a playing card at her, and it enlarged, blocking Yayoi.

Such a clever boy. She gazed into his eyes — his beautiful, mysterious, entrancing eyes which might not have been there behind his mask, but she didn't care. His purple hair fell over his face, giving it an attractive character. Slowly, gently, she pushed one strand to the side, and she slid her gloved fingers down his cheek, which felt so smooth even through the fabric. His gorgeous mouth formed a delicious smile under her touch, and she studied his wide lips, so sweet and inviting.

Her gaze trailed to his elfish ear with the pretty pearl stud, and she gave into the impulse to stroke the pointed tip. Joker leaned into her touch like a cat getting scratched. He hummed a soft laugh — it sounded so wonderful now. So mesmerizing. He dipped his head toward her, and something lovely stirred inside Reika. He stopped mere inches from her face, waiting for her to make the next move.

She obliged and met his expectant mouth with her own.

"REIKA!" screamed tiny Nao and Akane.

"REIKA-CHAN!" shrieked Miyuki and Yayoi, their cries echoing across the vast room.

She blocked them out, leaning into her beloved. What did any of them know about this kind of heaven? Why did they want to drag her away from it?

As Reika wrapped her arms around his neck, she heard Joker snap his fingers.

The noise and light of the ballroom vanished.

* * *

A/N:

* _And why did she stop going on morning jogs with her brother?_ — Although nothing is directly stated about Reika resuming or ceasing her jogs with Junnosuke after Ep. 16, since Reika seems largely unprepared for the relay race in Ep. 18, my headcanon is she stopped.

* _Cendrillon... talked with Miyuki for over an hour_. — If Nao got to drive the pumpkin carriage, we all know Miyuki would've wanted to meet Cindy, even if we didn't see this onscreen in the episode proper.

* _Not all versions will be harmed, only those written after Märchenland's 'Origins' spell was cast._ — Charles Perrault is the one who added the fairy godmother and the pumpkin carriage to the story, but he adapted his story from the Italian version, "Cenerentola", which was recorded by Giambattista Basile in _Pentameorone_ (posthumously published in 1634, sixty-three years before Perrault's version). Thus, I added the bit about older versions not being affected.


	2. Chapter 2

So, FFN seems to be having this glitch where it isn't sending me all my notifications, so I didn't even know I had so many faves and follows for this fic until I happened to glance at it. I'm also wondering if the thank-you notes I sent to reviewers have gotten through. So, if you reviewed my other stories and didn't seem to get a response from me, I'm saying right now THANK YOU because they REALLY help me out! Entertaining my readers is a BIG part of why I write, so your feedback tells me that I'm accomplishing that goal! :D

* * *

Although she kept her eyes closed, Reika knew Joker had teleported them outside. The world darkened against her eyelids, and the air took on an evening chill with the scent of the outdoors. But the warmth of his breath, the gentle, affectionate movements of his lips, the brush of his long bangs against her face, the caresses through her hair, the safe firmness of his torso, his strong arm still around her waist, her own sweet rubatosis — these were what kept her mesmerized.

Joker descended slowly. He placed her on the ground, but she clung to him until he cupped her face, gently breaking free of her lips. She opened her eyes and gripped his cuffed wrists, panting. He raised his head enough to nuzzle her hair, placing a kiss on her forehead.

"Oh, Cure Beauty," he murmured.

Her heart leapt to hear her name on his lips. She wanted more. Something more personal.

"R...Reika," she whispered.

He kissed her head again. "Reika."

It sounded like music.

She leaned into him, and he pulled her back into his strong embrace. She wrapped her arms around his slender waist and rested her cheek against his chest, relishing the feel of his coat, the heat of his form, his hands stroking her back, the sound of his heart...

She gazed out without seeing anything, but bit by bit her euphoric mind took note of her surroundings. A beautiful, blue-tint full moon hung in the starry heavens, bathing them in its gentle light. The dark shapes of mountains and forests lined the horizon, and the many blue spires of the Prince's palace drew her eyes to the scintillating beauty on the nearby hill. Beneath the castle, a serpentine path cut through the trees, connecting it to the rest of the realm. She might have heard water running in the distance.

She turned her head, laying her opposite cheek against her beloved, gazing with mild curiosity at the radically different sight awaiting her. Yellow lanterns hung from cottages and shops lining different dirt roads. A few windows cast warm beams through partially closed curtains and shutters, but many laid dark. She recognized this place from when she had admired the view from the palace: this was the village at the foot of the hill, on the other side of the river.

The party guests the generals had chased off must not have returned yet, she realized dreamily, snuggling closer. So nobody would intrude on this private moment.

All too soon, Joker's long hands glided over her arms, unhooking her fingers from around him.

"We still have things to do before midnight, Reika," he murmured, bringing both her hands to his lips. "Afterwards, we can while away our time however you like."

Reika gazed at him dreamily, longingly, but something about what he said pricked at her memory. Why was midnight significant?

Then it hit her.

Midnight. Cinderella.

The magic book. Her role as the Prince. The effect her actions had on all the other Princes.

The other Princes... and their poor wives...

She sprang back, covering her mouth, trembling. Her mind racing, she gaped up at Joker. "You — You put a spell on me," she choked.

"You're able to realize that?" he asked, impressed. "Your mind must be even stronger than I thought. That's... actually pretty attractive."

Reika drew away from him, fighting against her flattered delight at his compliment even as she yearned to return to his embrace. She pictured the Cinderellas in Märchenland — fairies who the Precure had befriended, fairies who trusted the Precure to revive their queen and protect the happy endings of their kingdom. It didn't matter that a second trip would restore their story; what she had done was unforgivable... no, what _Joker_ had made her do was unforgivable.

Clenching her hands, she glared at him, hurt and mortified. "Why — Out of all the things you could've tried — "

"All's fair in love and war," he said carelessly.

He moved a step away, tucking his long arms behind him. "But as much as I enjoy a captive audience, I present you a fork in your path, to use your charming vernacular. If you want to go back to your friends, the Prince need only to ask for a horse from one of his loyal villagers. A little difficult on the night of the royal ball perhaps, but I know for a fact those stables have one horse left for hire."

Reika whirled toward the direction he indicated, spotting a sign with a galloping horse which hung over a pair of closed doors wide enough to admit a carriage.

"Thank you," she said stiffly.

"But I" — he moved toward a building with many windows and two lamps illuminating its oaken door — "I shall go inside that delightful inn over there — if you want to follow this new path to its logical conclusion, Reika."

Affection sparked at the sound of her name, but she struggled against it. Romantic love or not, arrow or not, that didn't erase the strong bond with her friends, who would be worried about her. She also had a duty to the Cinderella fairies and their Princes to salvage their stories as much as she could after... what had happened.

She turned away from her retreating darling — from that retreating _devil_, and she caught sight of the blue castle in the distance. The sparkling palace sat at the end of the road on the tree-covered hill, a sapphire against the star-spangled sky. Her path was clear. Her friends needed her. The fairies needed her. She had to go back and finish the story, no matter how much her soul longed to be with that beautiful boy.

She took two steps toward the stables. Each Cinderella loved her Prince, and each Prince loved his Cinderella. Reika wanted to respect that, to protect their smiles. To love someone was something fabulous, like how Mother and Father loved each other, like how Grandfather had loved Grandmother when she was still with them. That's what Reika wanted for herself, for her own Path. Joker was only an unwelcome detour she had to forget.

_He doesn't love me_, she told herself, struggling to combat the arrow's power. His tender caresses and mind-melting kisses had just been a tactic of war, a move on a grand chessboard. He wanted to unleash a Bad End on her family and friends, all of whom had legitimately earned their places in her heart. He would kill her without a second thought to please his emperor and his own sadism.

He had no real affection for her.

Joker... Joker didn't love her.

She stopped short, swallowing hard, blinking hot eyes.

The first boy who made her feel this way, the first boy she had ever kissed... didn't actually want her.

But she didn't actually want him either. She had to remind herself of that. She had to remember Eros's arrow wasn't real love. It couldn't be.

She clenched her teeth, fighting against the threat of tears. She told herself to keep moving, but her feet would not obey. The longer she stood there, the sharper her heart ached until it felt like it would stop beating altogether.

Real or not, she only wanted one thing right then.

Breathing in deeply until she could compose herself, she withdrew one of the embroidered silk handkerchiefs from her coat and dabbed her moist eyes. Straightening her ruffled cuffs and her long ponytail, she summoned her strength and squared her shoulders. She turned from the lights of the stable and trotted down the village road toward the inn, after the boy she adored.

* * *

She found Joker just inside the door waiting for her. He said nothing, only giving her a satisfied smile and a welcoming bow. Then he waved for her to step ahead of him, playing the valet to the Prince. Reika tucked her hands behind her back and walked into the front room of the warm inn.

The smell of firewood and cooking mutton wafted through the candlelit room. A few patrons chattered over a game of cards while a pretty maid served them, but they fell silent as they caught sight of Reika. A woman who might have been the landlady came toward them, bobbing businesslike curtsies. A pleated mob-cap covered her rosy curls, and a clean white apron hugged her wide frame.

"Your Highness — an honor!" she murmured, glancing reverently at Reika.

Reika gave her a respectful nod, not trusting herself to speak, her throat still thick with denied sobs.

Fortunately, Joker took charge.

"Is the parlor prepared for His Highness?" he asked the innkeeper.

The woman bowed her head. "Everything is as you instructed. Quiet and private."

"Excellent," said Joker, accepting the key she handed him.

Whispers erupted from the card table, but Reika kept her eyes fixed ahead. Doubtless the fairy-tale citizens wondered why their sovereign prince visited an inn on the night he planned to select his bride. Hot guilt swept over her, but she followed the innkeeper, aware of the soft but steady footsteps behind her.

The woman led them down a dim hallway toward the back of the inn. Reika soon stood in a small, furnished parlor with a comfortable fire behind a polished grate and glowing candles in sconces and candelabras which cast dancing shadows on the walls. The fragrance of the firewood smelled sweeter than the one in the front room, no doubt something special the establishment reserved for higher paying guests. The innkeeper vanished after another professional curtsy, leaving them alone.

Reika folded her arms, fidgeting with her blue sleeves, waiting for Joker to speak. When silence met her instead, she dared to turn — and her heart fluttered to see him watching her.

His eyes closed with a cat-like smile, calm and pleased. Without a word, he turned and crossed the room to a pretty, Baroque-style _canapé_ sofa. He sat, tugging out the tie on his ponytail. Like three springs, the divided portions of his hair jumped back to their usual shapes. Then he patted the spot beside him, beckoning Reika.

She complied with leaden steps, slowly sinking onto the seat. She linked her ankles and folded her hands in her lap, staring at her gloves. Perhaps it was a pose too feminine for the Prince, but did that even matter now?

"You know," Joker said, crossing his legs, "if you ever tried out for Shakespeare's _Twelfth Night_, you'd make a darling Viola."

Reika closed her eyes, struggling against the mental tempest.

"Why have you done this?" she whispered. "You hate me."

"Do I?"

She gripped her hands together. "Don't insult my intelligence. Please."

He leaned back against the armrest. "No doubt this looks odd from your perspective. It's" — touching the white covering over his nose — "a mask I've worn well, but there are times when even a clown has to realize he's the butt of the wrong joke and change his act."

She frowned at him. "I don't understand. Every time you've appeared, you've been nothing but hostile."

"Naturally," he said simply. "I was doing my duty to Emperor Pierrot-sama. I wouldn't even exist if it weren't for him."

"Oh?"

Nodding, he produced his purple playing cards from seemingly nowhere. He spread them out like a fan, and one card rose above the rest. Keeping the rest suspended in the air, he plucked it up and handed it to her: the Joker card with his own slender silhouette, one arm frozen in a wave.

"Do you know when the Joker playing card was invented, perchance?"

"Actually, yes," she said, glancing up at the flickering candles casting dancing beams on the ceiling rose. "Nao's favorite book growing up was _Alice's Adventures in Wonderland_. We used to act out scenes with our toys, and we wondered one day why the Joker wasn't in the book with the other cards. My brother looked it up on the computer for us. The _Wonderland _book was published in England in 1865, but the early trump card was invented in America around this time and hadn't yet been adopted in decks overseas."

"Goodness, you _are_ well informed, aren't you?" he said, waving the rest of the deck away. "You're a breath of fresh air after all the morons I've had to deal with these past few months."

She smiled a little; he sounded sincere. Then an alarming thought occurred to her, and she let out a startled gasp, spinning to look at him. "You aren't — ?"

"No, I'm not that old card," he chortled, "but you should _see_ your face, Reika!"

"But" — she hesitated, studying the black silhouette and the vertical letters spelling his name in English — "are you still saying you're a playing card?"

"In a manner of speaking," he said good-naturedly. "I'm the ninth of my line to bear the name _Joker_. The first was a creation of Pierrot-sama. He married a Bad End fae, and the family has served the throne for nearly a century and a half. While I'm not a full playing card, Pierrot-sama's magic runs strong in me."

"That's... actually amazing," she said slowly, tracing the black image. She had a passing interest in genealogies; she could remember her mother and her late grandmother sitting her between them and showing her the family trees of both the Aokis and the Murasakinomotos. To think Joker could boast about being the ninth of his name was unique, to say the least.

"Thank you." He reached over to give the tip of her blue ponytail a soft kiss.

Electricity coursed through her, making her want to scoot closer to him and lay her head against his shoulder, but seeing him play with her hair reminded Reika of another occurrence between them. When they had fought against each other, he had mockingly slipped in close to her face and grabbed the long side lock she gained as Cure Beauty. He had ran his tongue down the icy-blue strand, as if proving he was too fast for her to lay a finger on him. Then he had tossed her about like a rag doll and kicked her.

Gently, she withdrew her hair from his loose grip, returning her attention to the playing card.

"Is this all your revenge?" she asked, very quietly. "Because of our fight a few months ago?"

He tented his slender fingers, tapping the tips. "If I wanted to give you a Bad End, a love arrow wouldn't be my weapon of choice. As I said before, the tallest tower would be a quicker exit."

She wanted to believe him: she wanted to _let_ herself believe him. However, while she had only encountered him a handful of times, her history with the other generals could not so easily reconcile her mind to this development.

"A few weeks ago, Wolfrun said love was pointless," she said slowly, remembering the day when Wolfrun had attacked a couple on an afternoon date simply because he didn't like them being affectionate. "I would think you'd all feel the same way in the Bad End Kingdom," she murmured with a side look.

"Wolfrun-san speaks for Joker?"

She shook her head, trying not to lose her senses in the sudden rise of hope, but she still sounded breathless when she said, "Then explain it to me."

"Gladly." He swung himself to his feet, twirling once before he faced her. "This might take awhile. Would His Highness like an anachronistic refreshment?" he quipped.

She mumbled water would be fine. With a snap, Joker conjured a goblet in his hand. Bringing out an Ace of Diamonds next, he held the card over the cup, and fresh, clean water poured out of the single diamond. Reika vaguely accepted the goblet but did not take more than a few sips, too thrilled with anticipation.

Joker slung his plum coat over the sofa's backrest, now exposing the white sleeves of his shirt beneath his waistcoat. He retreated to the fireplace with his own goblet, which had some green liquid that reflected shimmering lines against the underside of his pointed chin.

"So," Reika said, watching him intently, "when did you start... thinking about me that way?"

He swirled his drink until the green mass jumped into the air, did two flips, and plopped back into the cup without splashing a drop on his white cravat.

"Oh, there wasn't an _exact_ moment, more like it came by osmosis. You were an interesting enemy to study, creative and logical, like with Majorina-san's Mirror Akanbe. Or using the Umbrella Decor when you ladies shrunk — why did you have that thing in your pocket, by the way?" he asked suddenly. "I thought the fairy kept guard of the Cure Decors when not in use."

Reika fiddled with her goblet, feeling awkward. "Um, well, for a brief time, I wanted to study them using the scientific method. But then I got too busy with my schoolwork to keep at it."

He nodded approvingly. "This is what I mean. You think and reason, but I think the first moment you genuinely impressed me was during your first encounter with a Blue Nose Akanbe. The way you froze it to the ground to stop its attacks was clever."

"That was back in April," she noted. It had happened before the school trip to Kyoto and Osaka. "I'm not surprised you've been watching us for so long."

"Since before Cure Sunny joined, actually, but that's neither here nor there," he said carelessly, swinging his arm hard enough to make his green drink perform another physics-defying flip. "After that battle, I took a greater interest in this Cure Beauty, who gave quite a show, like when she played tag with the Tsuutenkaku. Or when she used the Beauty Blizzard on the invisible Akanbe."

"Those were just things that needed to be done at the moment."

"A lot of battles are lost because warriors didn't _do_ things needed at the moment," he countered. "But you had admirable qualities in your normal life, too, like your skill at archery or your self-discipline with your Student Council duties. I sometimes thought if Wolfrun-san, Akaoni-san and Majorina-san were as dedicated to our king as you were to the school, we'd be unstoppable."

Reika flinched at the thought.

"And so you, um, admired me even before we met. Is that what you're saying?"

"Yes, not that I would've admitted it back then."

An admiration which had come through spying, that nagging part of her mind pointed out. Spying for war, to bring a Bad End on people who had never done him any harm.

"And when we did meet, you took the Décor Décor from us and kidnapped Candy," she murmured, recalling the smug way he had swooped into their lives. But she could feel the fingers of euphoria creeping into her memory. The righteous anger associated with that night struggled against her sudden recollection of how gorgeous and mysterious Joker had looked in the starlight. So attractive...

She bent her head over her goblet, pressing her lips together.

"I had to stop the Queen from reviving, right?" Joker countered. "But you got your fairy and the little knick-knacks back, all because of..." He trailed off.

She waited. "Of?"

He did not reply immediately. He released his goblet, leaving it suspended in the air, where it then floated to the mantle. He closed the distance between them, reaching for her hand. Reika quickly put her own goblet to the side and allowed him to pull her to her feet. She stared into his conflicted face, gripping his forearms.

"You're interesting to observe from a distance," he said in a low voice, holding her, "but you're a lot... prettier in person. If only I had realized that before my blunder. If Pierrot-sama knew... but this fixes everything, doesn't it?" he said in a rush. "I'm not a traitor. No one is as faithful to the emperor as myself. One mistake shouldn't undo a lifetime of service, right?"

Reika touched his chest. "What do you mean? What did you do?"

He gave a cold laugh. "I lost. To you. In the most avoidable way possible. All because I wanted your respect."

"Well, you had it," she murmured, growing more fixated with his black eyes. How could two holes in a mask express so much? "And you were an amazing, intelligent fighter," she said truthfully.

"Not so intelligent. I had all the purified Decors safely in our kingdom, right? I kept one with me to prevent the Décor Décor from being completely filled. Don't you remember?"

Reika nodded. "It was a logical thing to do, if you had to do it."

But he didn't _have_ to do it, the stubborn side of her protested, but it was hard to listen to it when Joker stood so close to her...

Her beloved exhaled, running his hand over her hair to bring her ponytail over her shoulder.

"The plan should've worked — but I couldn't resist showing off. Against all my years of training under Pierrot-sama, I brought out that stupid trinket to make you see how I'd beaten you. And like a fool, I didn't put it back in its hiding place. And so you took it. And the Precure got the Pegasus's power from the Décor Décor, and my king lost." He grimaced. "Because I wanted to impress my irresistible enemy."

"I... I was already impressed," she said, gripping his waistcoat. "I was terrified of facing you on my own, even with Pop-san helping. But I knew it had to be done to help Candy."

"I suspected as much. Maybe if I'd been satisfied with that, we'd both be in Pierrot-sama's new world right now."

Her heart gave a strange thump. "New world?"

To her amazement, Joker brightened, forming a smile — an authentic, boyish smile.

"Imagine the Ball of Neglect, but meant for his faithful followers instead of his enemies," he said longingly before a grain-sized, mischievous sparkle glinted in one of his shadowy eyes. He touched her waist. "In that delectable place, who knows what we'd be up to at this moment?"

Reika averted her eyes, heating again. "And where does the Ball of Neglect come into your story?" she mumbled. "Would you have kept us trapped there?"

"That was my plan — well, that and I would've turned it into a snowglobe and put it on my shelf. Oh, don't give me that look," he chided. "What was I to do? Not only had my attraction to you cost us the ultimate victory, the other generals lost the next sixteen Decors almost in the same month, which let the Precure unlock the Royal Clock. I had to atone for what I had done to my master somehow.

"But did the Ball work? No, it only multiplied my transgressions against Pierrot-sama. Cure Happy forced me to summon an Akanbe, using a nose I'd been keeping for months on my person. Which the Precure destroyed, and you got the Elephant Decor.

"Because I lost the Elephant Decor, little Candy — _Candy_, Reika — was able to neutralize Akaoni-san in your next battle. The Precure got the Banana Decor, which _Candy_ used to defeat Majorina-san and get the Angel Decor, and it kept going. What can I do on such a slippery slope, knowing I'm to blame for Pierrot-sama's enemies gathering the tools needed to revive the Queen? How could I cause more harm to the clown who created my ancestor? Who raised me himself?"

Slowly, Reika released him. "So your solution was to use an arrow on me, to force me to love you."

"That was just serendipity knocking on the door, and I couldn't resist."

He clicked his fingers, and his abandoned coat rose up from the couch as if it had taken on a life of its own. One lapel swung out, and gingerly the second golden arrow rose, just enough to show Reika the heart-shaped head.

"Especially when I have a spare anyway," he chirruped.

Reika stared. "What favor is big enough to earn two arrows?"

The coat promptly closed and re-draped itself over the couch. Joker tutted his tongue.

"Oh, I can't betray a confidence, even to satisfy your curiosity. Unspeakable things happen to Bad Enders when they ignore basic decency to people with powers. Although," he tittered slightly, "I'll admit I planned to use them to make one or two Precure fall in love with a Bad End monster. Divide and conquer."

She stepped back, agape. "You would've — "

"But I'm nothing if not an opportunist," he said quickly, "and when I saw you here, with no Smile Pact, I took a chance. And it paid off." He held out his hands. "And this day can end splendidly for us both, Reika."

She raised her hand, intending to take his, but his casual confession at what he would've done to her friends, given the chance, stirred something inside her mind. Her sense of logic struggled against her infatuated delirium and managed to unearth a real, cold fact.

"But," she said, with difficulty, "we barely know each other — we _don't_ know each other."

"We have our whole lives to get better acquainted."

She shook her head. "Joker, I'm serious."

"Of course. No clown is complete without his straight man," he joked.

She held his gaze. "Please."

He released a sigh and, taking her hand, guided her to the window. He drew back the curtain, revealing the dim alley behind the inn. He tapped the paneled glass, and the pristine squares rippled and grew dark like a Bad End Space.

"My story begins and ends with Pierrot-sama," he said. "He has been called the Emperor of Evil, but a better description would be the Emperor _over_ Evil." In the dark patches, glowing red eyes began to appear, narrowed in baleful glares. Although Reika knew it was only an illusion, she could almost sense the malicious thoughts radiating from them.

"Wicked things," he continued, inflecting, "nightmares, ghouls, wights, shades, everything that goes _bump_ in the night. Once upon a time, the emperor had ruled them with an iron fist, keeping them locked in their Bad End, where they couldn't escape and hurt Märchenland and the other realms — isn't that just a scream?" he added with a bitter grin. "Bet you didn't see that coming, did you?"

Reika tore her gaze from the crimson glowers, crestfallen. "You grew up in that?" she asked, gripping his hand.

"Reika-ouji, we all did," he said. "A large reason why Pierrot-sama brought the first Joker to life was to entertain his court and protect them from the encroaching despair. But when you have that much concentrated evil in one realm, inevitably, tragedy falls. Even on Pierrot-sama."

She understood. "His wives."

"You're quick to catch on."

She hesitated, then moved closer to him, still holding his hand. "Did tragedy fall upon you?"

Joker grew awkward. "Well, yes, but I wouldn't dream of rating my problems on Pierrot-sama's level. He's seen centuries worth of torment. I have no place to complain."

Her heart twisted for him.

"Everyone is allowed to feel grief. It's not a competition." She gave a sad smile. "Who did you lose?"

He averted his gaze. The fire crackled and muttered in the hearth, and the clock on the mantle ticked.

Finally, he said, "When I was small, my parents died while vainly attempting to save the empress from a Scandinavian _bäckahäst_, a water-dwelling, flesh-eating horse. What the palace staff managed to dredge out of the river wasn't fit to be buried."

Reika gasped softly, staring.

"Pierrot-sama himself has reared me since that day," he went on, "and groomed me to be his eyes and ears in his war. A huge honor."

Reika lowered her eyes, letting that sink in. Her beloved boy, orphaned and traumatized at a young age, had been raised by that... that creature who had been ready to destroy everything that didn't fit with his new world. Before, when she had hated him, Joker had just been an enemy to be stopped, an evil shadow she tried to forget once she left his presence. Not even a person, just an obstacle, the Other.

But... never once did she question his motives, ponder why he could hate anything so much as to give others a Bad End. Villains in fairy tales were usually born evil, so she had assumed... but the real world didn't work that way. She didn't support what he had wanted to do, even under the arrow's influence, but if Emperor Pierrot had put him on the wrong path at a young age — and if both the emperor and Joker had grieved for years over their lost ones, letting their hate and sorrow fester — and if nobody had been there to help either to see a better way...

She gave into her sudden impulse to bring his gloved hand against her cheek, stroking his fingers.

"Don't pity me, Reika," Joker said quietly. "Pierrot-sama has suffered more than me."

_Why should that lessen __the importance of__ your problems?_ she wanted to say, feeling protective of him. When her grandmother died a few years ago, after nearly five decades of marriage, Grandfather wouldn't have told an orphan not to mourn his parents: Grandfather would have respected Joker's problems, even as he struggled through his own.

But Joker didn't have an Aoki Sataro looking after him. He only had Emperor Pierrot.

"He's been a father to you, hasn't he?" she said.

For the first time, she saw Joker duck his head, modest.

"Oh, I couldn't claim that joy," he murmured in a way which Reika found heartwarming. "I'm just a servant he bred, only a little above an Akanbe really. Which is why I struggled against... what I did with the Cure Decor I didn't put back. And with you."

He brushed aside her _hime_ side lock, touching her face. "But now, I'm not staring at a fork in the road, but a single path. If you're willing, Reika."

He leaned down for a kiss. Her heart wanted to give him one — or several — but something in her mind continued to protest. What about Märchenland? The fairies? The sleeping Queen? The Precure? The Bad Energy the generals had harvested? Falling in love with Joker didn't mean all those things melted away.

Before his lips could touch hers, she turned her head, evading him. She retreated to the side wall, hugging herself.

"But this isn't real," she whispered. It hurt to say it, but someone had to. "What I feel... isn't my own."

He glided beside her and laid his hands on her shoulders. "It could be."

She closed her eyes. "Not when you hurt people."

"Only because they hurt me first," he retorted. "And my master. Bad End monsters come from human storytellers, so whose fault is it when one of them drowns and eats the empress? Or my family?"

Reika did not reply, but her shoulders loosened beneath his palms. Joker must have noticed because he leaned down, bringing his head against hers.

"You can't deny we have a lot in common," he said in her ear. "We're both intelligent, driven, creative. And I think out of all the humans I've encountered, you'd have the best luck living in the Bad End Kingdom."

She shuddered, remembering that dismal place.

"It won't be so horrible forever," he chuckled, nuzzling her hair. "Once Pierrot-sama brings about his ideal world, you'll forget your own ever existed. But in the meantime, respect and obedience go a long way. Most characters earn their horrible fates by being rude to the wrong person or failing to follow instructions. A proper young lady like you will not just survive, but _thrive_."

She leaned against him, but then she realized what he was implying. "I-I can't live in the Bad End Kingdom with you. I'm only fourteen," she protested, even as that lovely stirring awoke again.

"And I'm sixteen, but I'm not suggesting we elope right this second. I'm just saying that when you _do_ come home with me, you'll enjoy yourself. And we have rooms full of books you can read and places where you can practice archery, and I know how much you love castles," he purred, laying his chin against her head. "I saw how excited you got visiting the one in Osaka. The Bad End Palace has a long history, and you can explore it to your heart's content, perfectly safe."

She squeezed his hand, a little mesmerized. She didn't care for the Bad End Palace, which had looked haunted and foreboding, but if Joker were with her, it could be beautiful. She could see them sitting at a table in a library, his arms around her while she read aloud. Did he like biographies and history books like she did? If he didn't, she wouldn't mind. Mother liked poetry while Father preferred non-fiction.

"And Emperor Pierrot?" she asked.

His fingers firmed their grip. "In and of itself, my master wouldn't be against me showing an interest in someone. He's managed to enjoy that type of happiness, brief as it has been for him, so why would he object under normal circumstances?"

She slowly turned in his arms, silently looking up at him. He only smiled in response, but the weight of the unspoken truth hung over them. Nothing about this was normal.

So what happened if Emperor Pierrot told Joker he couldn't pursue her, that he had to go back to fighting her?

Holding his fathomless gaze, she said, "I read the Greeks had four or five different words for 'love.' A word for family love. A word for friendship love. A word for... what's between us."

Joker nodded. "_Eros_."

Reika reddened, but she pressed on. "Whatever I feel... and want... doesn't make me let go of my other kinds of love. I'm still a Precure."

He shrugged lazily. "That's definitely a spanner, but I have a compromise, if you'll indulge your Joker."

Her Joker.

"G-Go on," she stuttered, her breath hitching a little.

He released her and stepped back, clasping his hands behind him. "Take out what you have in your right pocket."

She obey and — with an icy grip on her heart — pulled out her Smile Pact.

That sparkle returned to his shrouded eye.

"Reika," he said, "do you love me enough to give me that back?"

* * *

"_But as much as I enjoy a captive audience_..." — That pun came from the _Arkham Asylum_ game, spoken fittingly by DC's Joker.

_Nao & Wonderland_ — Since Ep. 34 had Nao dress up as Alice for the storybook fashion show, I'm going with the interpretation of "Alice" being something she liked even when she was younger. (The book has all those cute animals, which probably appealed to her, haha.)

_Elephant Decor_ — Poor Joker. He was probably already stinging about losing the Star Decor to Beauty. Then after brooding in Ep. 30 over the Precure getting so many Decors, he loses the one he had been wearing as a fashion accessory in Ep. 32, and that allows the girls to get 5 more, meaning he basically gave them over 25 percent of Decors they needed. Then he loses the Pudding Decor in Ep. 43. Not a good year for a loyal, evil jester trying to revive a clown monster.


	3. Chapter 3

She stared at him. Then she pulled away, holding her Smile Pact protectively against her.

"You _just_ had it. Why give it back and then ask for it?"

"Simple," he replied, still in that confident pose. "Have you ever heard of selkies?"

She shook her head, frowning.

He gave her a sweet, knowing grin. "They are a curious piece of folklore," he said. "Scottish, if I'm not mistaken."

He pulled out a card. The front had a drawing of a cute, gentle-looking seal lounging on rocks above foamy waves.

"Briefly, selkies are seals who turn into beautiful maidens when they remove their magical skin."

He adroitly flipped it, and in a blink the image changed to a woman sitting where the seal had been, hugging a pelt of gray sealskin to her chest like a blanket.

"In those tales," he continued, "human men steal their skin to make them their wives. Regardless of what she feels for her husband or for the children she has by him, if the selkie finds her skin, she'll flee to the water and never return to her human family."

The card vanished with a flick of his wrist, and he moved closer.

She retreated two steps.

He gave her a patient look. He pointed to the pink lid of the Pact.

"This is your skin, Reika," he said. "I _could_ steal it from you, but since I don't have the power to destroy it, there's a strong chance you'll find it again — or it will find you. And then you'll leave me. But if you turn it over, of your own accord, then we have a chance at finding our Happy End together."

She moved back. "Don't make me do this."

"I'm not making you do anything."

"Aren't you?" Her throat tightened. She struggled to remain calm, to project a strong, snowy picture of a mountain, but volcanic fire burned within her beneath the icy surface. "You're manipulating the arrow's effect on me to get what you want. Do you even care that you're dooming my family if I quit the Precure for you?"

"Reika, this isn't your Bad End — or theirs. Can you follow this path with me?"

She gritted her teeth. "My grandfather is the one who taught me to search for the correct path. Do not mock him. Or me."

Covering his heart in oath, he said, "I promise you, right now, that if you give me your Pact, no harm will come to the Precure or your family by my hand. I can't stop the generals from doing their job — that would be treason against Pierrot-sama — but my primary duty right now is searching for the Miracle Jewel. My focus will be on that, not fighting your friends."

He held her gaze. "Reika, this is how we can be together, if both of us stay out of the main battles until this war is finished. If Cure Beauty never comes back."

She stepped back.

"Please, Reika," he urged, gentler. "Say you're mine."

Out of the question. She couldn't. It would be the same as condoning genocide. There had been plenty of battles where all five Precure had been needed. Not only would she be failing her friends, she would be failing every future victim of the Bad End Spaces and every future casualty lost in failed encounters with the generals. And every soul who would be lost when Emperor Pierrot revived.

Reika gripped her Pact, holding onto it as if it were a rope keeping her from plunging into an abyss. She tried to stay composed and search for the right path out of this mess, but she already knew her only course of action.

She couldn't hand it over. She just couldn't.

She had to stay Cure Beauty. She had to protect people's smiles, even if it meant she had to fight her beloved right there. Even if it meant she couldn't be with him. Even if it meant she would never see his own lovely smile again or hold his hand or listen to his heart. Even if it meant her Joker had to go back to the Bad End Kingdom where the only person who came close to loving him was that awful clown who had put him onto this dark path in the first place. Even if it meant someday she might have to deliver the final blow that would take her Joker out of this world. Even if it meant a Bad End for both of them, forever separated from each other.

She had to be a Precure. She couldn't explore this new path.

She couldn't be with Joker.

She couldn't… She couldn't…

She dropped her gaze.

...But she also couldn't bring herself to return to the Prince's palace earlier. Not when it meant leaving her Joker behind.

And now that she knew he actually wanted her, that he harbored hopes which involved her, that he was actually willing to stop fighting the Precure directly, in opposition to Emperor Pierrot, just to be with her…

She drew in a deep breath — and held out her irreplaceable Smile Pact.

"Alright."

His smile broadened.

And he took the Pact.

Reika shuddered as it left her hand, but she could not tear her eyes away as Joker turned it over to inspect the pink exterior. With a flick of his thumb, he opened the lid and picked up her Transformation Decor, admiring the blue diamond and bow on the front.

"Diamonds always were my favorite suit." He shot her a small smile. "They remind me of Pierrot-sama's victory over Harlequin the Interloper."

"Who's that?" she asked.

"Long story, but you'll hear all about it later," he promised. "It'll be good for you to know our kingdom's history. For now, let's just say there's a reason why the emperor bears the diamond shape on his regal attire."

Reika vaguely recalled the lines of four-point diamonds which the titanic Pierrot had sported across his torso and his sleeves. At the time, however, she had been more concerned about the destructive behemoth rising out of a pool of lava than said behemoth's fashion choices.

_And that person is responsible for my Joker_, she thought. _His existence, his rearing, his everything._

She balled her hands into fists.

Joker closed the Pact with a snap, and with a twist of his wrist, it vanished from sight. Gently, he laid his hands against her shoulders, running his thumbs against the yellow fringe of her regal epaulettes.

"You won't regret this, Reika — not when you see the comforts and pleasures awaiting you."

She tried to give him a smile — but even though the arrow gave her heart a certain sweetness, the part of her that loved everyone else in her life wouldn't let her enjoy it. Reika stared at the wooden floor, swallowing. How would she explain this to the other girls? She pictured their mortified faces — and with a jolt of alarm, she remembered how she and Joker had made their exit from the Prince's palace.

"I need to send a message to my friends," she said quickly. "They're probably sick with worry."

Joker conjured parchment and a purple quill that produced its own ink like a pen. Reika wrote a brief note promising she was safe and asking Miyuki to meet her back at the ballroom. Joker attached the paper to a playing card and sent it flying out the window and into the night.

Reika gazed after it even as it disappeared over the roof. She hoped the girls wouldn't think Joker had forged it.

_But at least there are four Precure left, right?_ she tried to console herself. They had the Cure Decors, which, as Joker had pointed out, had been invaluable in their more recent fights. As long as the others remained, then at least Earth and Märchenland had a chance.

Right?

She closed the window, restored now to translucent glass, and she caught a glimpse of her conflicted blue eyes staring back at her. Yet — she silently told her reflection — all she could do now was to keep moving forward.

With her Joker.

As she drew the curtain, she noticed his reflection behind hers, watching her, and she turned to face him, hands hanging at her side.

Joker twinkled at her. "Now then…"

With that, he sprang forward, reaching for her. Grasping her waist, he hefted her above his head, swinging her about. A laugh escaped Reika, and the grim weight left her heart at the sight of Joker's smile. He chortled with her and — in a flash — brought her toward him, meeting her with a warm kiss.

"Oh — oh, don't," she gasped and turned her head away, blushing with embarrassment and delight. "Wait until we're back in the real world."

"But why wait? We can have our own private ball right here," he purred. "And the Prince doesn't find Cinderella until tomorrow morning — afternoon at the latest. We have so many hours to fill, Ouji-sama."

He kissed her cheek next. Reika struggled to remember her objections as the magical euphoria glided through her.

"I-It's not fair to the Cinderella and Prince fairies, and — and Pop-san is probably watching us in the real world," she squeaked. She flushed to think of what sort of illustrations now graced the Origin book as the he-fairy flipped through the pages.

Joker propped her against his chest, high enough for her to rest her forearms on his shoulders.

"Fine, though this isn't entirely out of character for some of the Princes. Do you think he'd be interested in Cinderella if she were only the _second_ most beautiful girl at the ball?"

She brushed aside his purple bang. "Maybe he would, if they talked while they danced," she replied sensibly. "He might have discovered he liked her lovely heart more than her looks."

"Wait until you meet the Prince from 'Fair, Brown and Trembling' before you pass that kind of judgment," he said dryly. "In that version he was first in love with Fair-hime, the oldest sister, but he forgot her the moment he saw the much prettier Trembling-hime leaving Mass."

"Oh, dear."

Still holding her with one arm, Joker's other hand came up to play with her coat's high collar. "But does Cinderella's Happy End _need_ to involve marriage? The Prince could just go platonically looking for the mysterious maiden to restore her estate after Cinderella mentioned her step-mother stealing her inheritance." He brought the ruffles of her cravat to his lips. "And you can spend the rest of this tale with _your_ true love."

"We can't," she protested, but her resolve seemed to trickle away the more she gazed at his beckoning smile.

"So many, many hours to while away, Reika," he coaxed. "And so many possibilities. The Prince can go anywhere in this kingdom. Aren't you at all curious about this realm?"

"A little," she admitted. It would be interesting to see how complex this world was: how far back did the history go? What was the culture of this kingdom? How layered were the psyches of the townspeople? Where were the borders of the kingdom, and did anything exist beyond them? It was the sort of thing one found in the science-fiction books she sometimes borrowed from her brother.

"And that's just the options we have on the ground," he grinned. He gave a slight jump, and the two floated gently toward the ceiling. "If you think flying around Osaka was fun, try it with an expert."

Reika glanced at their hovering feet, tempted. Their old Butterfly Decor had given her, Nao and Akane beautiful, glowing wings when they had to face off against the Akanbe version of the Tsuutenkaku Tower. Although her primary objective had been to save Miyuki, Yayoi and Candy, who had been trapped inside the gargantuan monster at the time, she'd be lying if she said she hadn't gotten some pleasure from soaring through the air. Now the Precure had obtained the Angel Decor, which they had used to make Miyuki fly with pink wings after Majorina had accidentally turned her into a mecha robot. Reika could probably persuade Candy to let her use the charm, and she could sprout magical wings once more.

She could see her and Joker hand-in-hand in the air, going where they pleased beneath the starry sky. It would be like when the fairy king gave Thumbelina (another Märchenland acquaintance) her wings, elevating her to join his world as his bride and his queen. Then perhaps as the dawn approached, she and Joker would return to the palace and sink onto one of the opulent couches. They'd remain there, curled up and cozy, until she had to summon the royal carriage to scout out Miyuki.

Her happy answer rose to her smiling lips.

Except…

Her words died as she thought of the tiny fairies, Ye Xian and Rhodopis. Was Joker correct about the older stories not being affected by her actions, or had they already suffered? She winced at the thought. They had been so nice to answer her questions about their bygone histories. In fact, all the Cinderellas Reika had met had been so warm and welcoming, not at all vain or pompous about their enduring popularity or royal titles. And wasn't that the point of Cinderella stories? The ill-used and abused heroines went through humiliations and suffering, but they never lost their kindness or sweetness. They clung to their Path of Virtue, and in the end they were elevated above all others.

She had to respect that.

"It sounds wonderful," she said at last, ignoring the slight ache of disappointment. "But I have to try my best, don't I? You and I have a long, beautiful path to explore together. Cinderella only has this story."

She let out a slow breath. "Even if we have to do a second try, we can at least give the characters a temporary happy ending."

She could at least salvage something for the fairies.

"As you wish, Ouji-sama." He swung her around a final time and gently lowered her. His hands lingered against her back.

A girlish smile took over her lips, but an image of her friends back at the palace stabbed her with guilt. She smoothed back her blue hair and straightened her cravat. She took his hand — it felt so natural to do — asked, "Will you take me back now? Everyone will be waiting — and I still have to explain this to them."

"Didn't you say to love someone is something fabulous?" he countered. "They'll get over it."

She pressed his hand, peering up at him imploringly. "They're still important to me," she said slowly. "Will you… Will you please try to be nice to them? For me?"

He hummed his laughter — oh, it sounded wonderful.

"Shouldn't be a problem," he said, gently tugging on her side lock, "seeing as they're no longer a threat."

* * *

All of her elation vanished. Reika stood upright, her eyes narrowing.

"What do you mean?"

He met her gaze boldly. "Maybe I still can't resist showing off in front of you, Reika. But this time, I'm going to do the smart thing and hide things which shouldn't be left out in the open." He chuckled. "Or in a classroom in the real world."

She released his hand, drawing back. "You didn't…"

He shook his head. "Now, now. Did you really think I'd grab your Smile Pact and not the others, when they were just lying there, unguarded?"

She covered her mouth.

Her beloved boy had… Even after her sacrifice, he would still want to… When she had given... When he had made her yearn for him so much...

"You lied to me," she said. Cold fury spread through her. "You said you wouldn't harm them."

"And I won't," he replied matter-of-factly. "They're still free to live their happy little lives until Pierrot-sama returns."

"You're condemning them."

"Come now, Cure Happy has her Pact, doesn't she?" he chirped. He tapped his chin. "Although I do have that second arrow. I could play Bad End Cupid."

"Joker!" she cried, clenching her fists.

"C'mon, it'd be hilarious," he argued cheerfully. "Imagine if the pink one fell for Akaoni-san, and they started a hybrid family someday. _Akaoni-san no akachan_. Rolls right off the tongue, don't it?" He tittered at his own wordplay.

She gritted her teeth. "You'd do this to the people important to me?"

To his credit, Joker's smile vanished.

"This changes nothing," he insisted. "Since I don't have to kill the Precure, you have nothing to mourn in the days to come. You'll go to school with the Precure as always and have your lunch breaks and gym classes together. You'll have your weekend shopping dates, fun in the park, and sleepovers. So when I come to visit you in the Human World, you can be with me without any grief."

She stared at him in disbelief. "You were still dishonest with me," she said in a suppressed voice. "And if you do this, you're sentencing an entire planet to death, along with Märchenland. I could live with quitting the Precure, when I thought the others would still be there, but now—"

She couldn't finish. Her throat tightened, making it hurt to speak.

"All's fair in love and war," said Joker.

She shook her head. "That isn't how love works," she answered hoarsely.

He rolled back his shoulders, holding himself erect. "If I do nothing, I'm useless. Pierrot-sama hates useless things. And I've already failed him too many times."

He gave her a firm look. "This is how he won't annihilate me the second I tell him I've chosen a Precure to be my partner in his new world. Do you think he'd let us have a Happy End if it meant aiding and abetting his enemies?"

"You're still hurting people I love."

He gave a slight exasperated sigh. "I don't argue you have that 'Greek friendship love' for them. So how about this? I can recreate the Ball of Neglect and put every person you love inside it, and they'll be safe when Pierrot-sama returns." He shook a finger. "You won't get that promise from anyone else in the Bad End Kingdom; I can tell you that."

He reached for her.

She spun away, rigid with rage.

Did he not care at all? Had he no empathy for her, after what she had given up to be with him? Couldn't he see how he was hurting her?

No. He didn't.

Warm, glorious emotions did not transform devils into angels, and months of secret longing for Cure Beauty did not change Joker from a beast. Even with her stolen heart in his hands, he was still a subject of the Bad End Kingdom and devoted to the monster who raised him. The promise of a loving road was not enough to draw Joker from Pierrot's dark highway.

_But… does he even know how to love me?_

Reika thought she knew the answer, and it made her hammering heart sink like a rock.

Joker liked her, wanted her. While that helped with love, it wasn't enough to _be_ love on its own. Inexperienced as she was, Reika knew enough from observing her parents that real love was something more. Mother and Father walked the path of their marriage as a team, sharing goals and supporting the other in their individual projects, complementing each other in both their similarities and their differences.

That's what Reika had always wanted for herself. But Joker didn't know how to step down that sweet road with her. How could he with someone like Emperor Pierrot as his role model?

_Calm down_, she urged herself. She couldn't find the true path if her mind stayed agitated. She sucked in a deep breath, counting to seven as she inhaled. She held it for another eight, soothing her pounding pulse.

This was just another battle, like when she had froze the first Blue Nose Akanbe to stop it from shooting plastic orbs to trap her, or when she had cast her Beauty Blizzard to find the invisible Akanbe so that the girls could send their Rainbow Healing to destroy it. If she just stayed calm, she could figure out how to help her friends.

She let out her breath slowly, scanning the room to help her think.

Her gaze fell upon his coat hanging on the couch.

She had an idea.

She straightened herself, squaring her shoulders. "Regardless of what I feel," she said in a monotone, hoping she sounded normal — or as normal as this situation demanded, "I have to finish this story. Then we can talk."

"Yes, let's come back to this with fresh minds," he agreed.

Turning slowly, she said, "Joker, do you know how to dance?"

His smile returned. "Some, some."

"Can you waltz? It's not important if it's historically accurate. As long as the Prince and Cinderella forge a connection, the story can progress to a good conclusion."

He laughed, moving closer. "You're still determined to give Cinderella the royal promotion?"

"I must do what I must do," she said. "Please teach me, Joker."

"Oh, why not?" he lilted. He snapped his fingers, and the furniture slid to the walls, forming an open space in the middle of the room. He stepped to the center, holding his arms ready for her; however, Reika followed after the couch, taking slow, deliberate steps.

"Perhaps you should put your coat back on," she said, draping the outerwear over her arm. "To make it more authentic."

She heard him move closer, and she turned to face him.

Joker gave a nod, reaching for his coat. "Method acting, I get it—"

But before he could finish, she withdrew the second arrow from the plum pocket and stabbed his stomach.

* * *

His black eyes widened, reddening to two fiery coals, but as the arrow melted into his flesh, his outrage dissipated. He gawked at her in silence before he took her arms, pulling her a little closer. The coat fell to the floor.

Reika considered then that she might have been too hasty with an arrow which made her beloved return her supernaturally charged affections, especially since the tender look he gave her made her own eyes sparkle. As all traces of her previous anger floated away, she had to remember quickly her resolution to respect the different Princes, hard as it was with his face so close to her own.

Fortunately for all fairies involved, Joker soon gave a soft laugh and drew away just a little, but not too much.

"Was that really necessary?" he asked calmly, caressing her forehead. "I already liked you."

To hear him actually say those simple words set off an unexpected tintinnabulation of delight within Reika, and she had to remember — rapidly — her new mission.

"And now you love me, don't you?" she pressed.

He cupped her chin. She could sense his gaze traveling across her face, and even in the Erebus of his eyes, she saw warmth.

"Would you believe," he said, "that before I met you, I didn't care much for blue eyes? Or blue hair. Or humans. But I wouldn't change an inch of you, Reika."

She took his wrist, her breath quickening just a little. "Really, Joker?"

"Cross my black heart," he replied, caressing her skin. "It didn't take an arrow to make me feel that."

"Then," she said, "you really love me now, is that right?"

He leaned low enough to brush his pointed nose against hers. "How can I deny it?"

It would have been so easy to raise herself up on tiptoe and kiss him, but she managed to hang onto her wits long enough to say, "Do you love me enough not to disband the Precure?"

He pulled upright, his smile vanishing. "That's not funny."

She grinned at him, fierce joy flowing through her. "Joker, do you love me enough to give me back their Smile Pacts?"

He tore his arm from her grip and jumped away, right to the other side of the room. He landed on an upholstered chair and hopped to the floor, wearing a look of disgust.

She folded her hands, not losing an inch of her smile, but she softened her tone. "Joker, do you?"

"It's not the same," he spat.

"Isn't it?"

"Everything I've done in this war has been for Pierrot-sama," he retorted, glaring down at his curled fists. "And if he knew about how I failed him, he'd kill us both. Disbanding the Precure means he'll let me keep you. Don't you see that?"

Reika stepped closer.

He spun away but did not try to flee again.

She walked around him and peered at his shadowed face. Even in the midst of his stony, defiant mien, she saw conflicted devotion as he glanced at her, the same lovesick desire she felt for him. Maybe more so, since he had a previous foundation of infatuation for the arrow build upon.

Reika experienced then one of the occasional occurrences which Nao dubbed her "sassy moments." Drawing herself up with the regal air she had been practicing for the Prince in the hours before the ball, she placed one hand behind her back and gestured to the nearest chair.

"Joker, please sit."

"I'd rather stand," he retorted, folding his arms.

"Your Prince commands it."

"I serve no Prince."

"Your girlfriend would like you to."

With a huff, he floated over to the chair despite it only being a few steps away, and he plopped down. Reika moved to stand in front of him, taking command of the situation.

"Now," she said, still holding onto her noble mien, "it is my turn to talk, and your turn to listen."

He grunted, arms crossed, back rigid, but he did not pull his eyes away from her face.

"Maybe I was forced to love you," she began, "but as it is now, I want to be with you, and you want to be with me. Correct?"

He nodded.

"And we both want to help our families."

He scoffed. "I have no family."

"Emperor Pierrot."

He looked away. "I could never claim that familiarity."

She relaxed her stance and took his hand. "But the feelings are there," she said kindly. "You obviously care for him. That's why you were so conflicted about liking me."

He grimaced, but he squeezed her hand. "I can't be with you if you stay a Precure. You know that."

"And it was one thing when I thought everyone would still be there to protect our home. But do you think I can be happy with you, knowing that the other generals can attack people I care about without anyone being there to defend them?"

"That's how war works, Reika."

"I know," she conceded, "but please, Joker. Give me their Pacts. Let them protect our world."

He clenched jaw defiantly. "I can replicate anything in your world with my illusions. You're not losing anything."

"It's still my home. My family is there."

"I can give you a new home — and a new family."

Reika's face went bright red.

"N-Not for many years yet," she managed to say softly. "But if — if we follow that path together, don't you think I'd want to share my history with my future children? The Aokis have lived in Nanairogaoka for generations. Our children should be able to know where they came from, just like you know where you come from."

He looked at her, serious. His voice grew thick. "Do you know what _he'd_ do to me if I give the Pacts back?"

Reika hesitated.

His muscles tightened. "Pierrot-sama is very good to those he likes, but — to those who earn his ire—" He faltered, shutting his dark eyes. "Don't make me go through that fire, Reika."

She touched his bare cheek. He trembled beneath her fingers.

"Worse of all," he continued hoarsely, "he might disown me. I couldn't stand it if he did. I _can't_."

"I won't ever tell a soul, not even the Precure," she promised. "Nobody ever needs to know you took them in the first place."

He laughed bitterly. "And how do I explain having only yours, eh? Or do you want me to give that back too? With this arrow inside my soul, he'll guess what I feel for you, even if we meet on the battlefield. And he'll find out everything because I won't be able to lie to his face, Reika. Then the end of all things will come."

Caressing his face, Reika pressed her lips together, trying to think.

What could possibly convince him?

She knew he had every right to fear retribution from the emperor; she had only seen a glimpse of Pierrot's power, but it had been potent and deadly. Joker might have cared for his imperial ancestor, but terror mingled with his devotion — a thought which made her eyes narrow.

But she had to return the Pacts to her friends; the Precure had to stand up to Pierrot.

But Joker had to stay safe, too; somebody had to protect him.

And that somebody could only be her. Maybe she didn't want him an hour ago, but she had a claim to him now, no matter what Pierrot thought. She took care of the people she loved.

That had always been her way.

She took both his hands in hers, gazing at him tenderly.

"If you give the Smile Pacts back to Yayoi-san, Akane-san and Nao," she said slowly, "and if you wait long enough for us to fix Cinderella's story…"

He raised his head. "Yes?"

Her mind bucked at the words hovering upon her tongue, but she pressed on.

"Then," she said, "you can tell Emperor Pierrot... that you took a Precure hostage."

Joker sat up. "Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

She nodded.

His smile returned. "You'll come live in the Bad End Kingdom tonight?"

She nodded again. "You can tell him I'm so in love with you, I don't ever want to leave your side," she said. "You don't even have to mention the other Precure at all."

"He might get amusement from you being a willing hostage," he said, leaning forward. Excitement danced over his features; if he had eyes behind his mask, they probably glittered. "And you'll live better than anyone else in the kingdom while you're with me, Reika. If the others don't like how well you're treated, I'll say it's all my brilliant plot to make you want to stay. As long as we play our cards right, we can make this work."

She gave a weak smile but couldn't maintain it. She pretended to be interested in straightening his sleeve instead. "I would've liked to have finished the school year," she said. "But I suppose, without the Precure" — she closed her eyes — "there might not even be a school there tomorrow."

Still sitting, he pulled her toward him — she did not protest — and settled her onto his lap. "You'll have access to any book in the world," he promised, looping his arms around her. "I can take you anywhere in the universe."

She laid her head on his shoulder. Despite her resolve to honor the marriages of the various Princes, she tried to draw comfort from her beloved's closeness.

"I just want to be able to explain it to my family. They won't like it, but… it's better than if they thought something happened to me."

He only kissed her face in response. She closed her eyes, focusing on him and blocking out the sinking feeling in her chest. She could feel a difference in him: his teenage infatuation had been replaced, and his embrace felt more tender, more devoted.

"So please, give the Smile Pacts back," she urged.

He hesitated. Then he snapped his fingers. In an instant, three Pacts appeared on Reika's lap. She quickly opened each one, smiling grimly to see the orange-circle, yellow-star, and green-gemstone Decors all in their slots.

"Don't you trust me?" Joker quipped.

She merely closed each and tucked them into her large coat pocket.

Grinning, Joker twisted one hand in a tight sweep, and in the next moment he held a darling red rosebud before her. She forced a grateful look as he helped her put it on as a boutonniere.

"Can I give His Highness a proper kiss now?"

"Oh, not yet," she murmured. "We're almost done with this story."

"I feel like a starving man placed in front of a banquet but denied a single crumb."

She exhaled slightly, feeling something akin to what she went through when she tried to explain to Nao why she should work through her irrational fear of ghosts.

"The other Princes are married," she reminded him. "If someone could play Aoki Reika in an Origin book, would you want them making me kiss somebody else?"

His eyes widened as if he were raising his eyebrows. "That's an interesting way to look at it."

"It's called empathy."

He nodded. "Ah, leave it to you to know it had a proper term." He gave her a sweeping glance. "You're always putting others first, Reika. I confess I don't understand it, but I promise I won't let this path lead to a Bad End."

"Actually," she said, "if you don't mind my saying so, my feelings are quite simple to understand."

"Oh, yeah?"

She nodded. "What I feel for the people important to me is no less than what you feel for Emperor Pierrot."

"Ah," he said and grew quiet.

* * *

A/N:

Selkies — Technically, legends of seal women can be found in other countries as well, but for the sake of simplicity I went with the Scottish version.

Transformation Decor — I find these Decors interesting. While the canon is vague on where they're stored when not in use, for my fic I just have them be in the Smile Pact.


	4. Chapter 4

"_REIKA-CHAN!_"

Miyuki swung her arms around Reika's neck so hard, they would've landed in a heap on the ballroom floor if Reika hadn't kept them balanced. Yayoi glomped onto her other shoulder while Candy latched onto her head. Nao and Akane clambered up Yayoi's dress to reach Reika and stretched their furry forelegs around her neck as far as they could reach. Everyone gushed at once about how glad they were that she was safe and asked if she had been hurt at all and what happened after she vanished and —

"I'm so sorry to worry you, _Minna-san_," said Reika, wearing a guilty smile. "I really meant to get here a little sooner."

"Well, it's not _your_ fault, now is it?" Nao squeaked beside her ear.

As if they had been cued, her friends turned their heads to look behind Reika.

"I brought the Prince back with time to spare," Joker said, undismayed, holding his hands behinds his back, "and I shall take my leave. For now."

Miyuki released Reika, moving to stand between her and Joker. Yayoi fell into rank beside her.

"What gives you the right to do such a horrible thing to Reika-chan?" Miyuki demanded. Her gloved hands shook. "Her heart is a precious thing, and I will never forgiv—"

"Miyuki-san!" Reika said sharply — it burst from her mouth before she could stop it.

Miyuki started and whirled to look at her in surprise.

Reika swallowed back her protective annoyance and smiled gently. "Let's just finish the story and give Cinderella her Happy End."

Miyuki furrowed her pink brows, glancing warily from her to Joker and back. Then she nodded. "Okay."

Joker dipped into a disinterested bow, but he shot Reika a wink. "I'll see you later, Ouji-sama, but I'll be nearby."

A large playing card, taller than Joker, materialized and swept around him. As it passed his bowing figure, he disappeared from sight, and the card flew off through the arched doorway of the ballroom and down the hall.

Reika watched after the card. Although she was precisely where she needed — and wanted — to be, a pang of longing pricked at her soul, already missing him. However, Nao, still on Reika's shoulder, drew her out of her pining thoughts as she laid a paw against her cheek.

"Reika…"

Reika cleared her throat. "Everything will be alright. Our primary goal right now is to help Cinderella."

She deposited Nao and Akane with Yayoi, and Candy leapt from her head to follow suit. She gave Miyuki a formal bow — _Oh, doesn't Joker bow so handsomely?_ — and said, "Joker showed me a few steps just before we returned, Miyuki-san. It's quite easy to learn. I'll help you."

She placed her right hand on her friend's waist, glad she had been correct the first time. Miyuki put her hand on Reika's shoulder, and Reika guided her into a slow, simple box step as the music started up once more. Despite her usual clumsiness, Miyuki set her full attention to mimic Reika's movements, determined to do her best as Cinderella's temporary avatar. Soon enough, they fell into a comfortable groove. Reika smiled at her friend's enthusiasm, although she'd be lying if she said she didn't wish she was back at the inn with her hand against Joker's side, feeling his muscles move beneath his clothes as he followed her inexperienced lead, listening to him hum a simple melody as the fire popped and the candles flickered, breathing in his scent which was sweeter than the firewood…

"...What about you, Reika-chan?"

She blinked, realizing that Miyuki had been speaking. "Huh?"

"I said, this makes me think of when we went to visit the Palace of Versailles. The Prince's castle has that same pretty look. What about you?"

"Oh. Yes. Well, Charles Perrault was French, so it would appear the Origin book drew inspiration from his life," suggested Reika.

Miyuki nodded. "Makes sense." After a pause, she added, "That was a fun day, when we went all over the world."

Reika gave a small hum of agreement.

"And this has been a fun day, too," Miyuki continued, glancing up at the coruscating chandeliers. "Even though those Bad End jerks played the Step-family and tried to make me miserable, that only makes Cinderella's ending more _ultra happy_."

Reika nodded. "By taking the perilous path," she reasoned, "the reward at the destination is that much sweeter."

Miyuki giggled slightly. "That's kinda what you said when we went to the Great Wall of China," she remembered. "And I guess that's why I like Cinderella so much. She goes through dark times, but she keeps smiling to a bright future."

She gestured about. "And that's why I'm glad to do what I can to protect her smile. I only went through _one_ day in her life. Imagine what she had to go through, year after year. Then she comes to this ball, and she meets her true love, and she becomes the princess of a whole kingdom and lives happily ever after."

Reika nodded again.

Miyuki stepped back for Reika to twirl her, and she tittered. "But I kinda wish we could come visit this palace whenever we wanted. Wouldn't you just _love_ to live in a castle like a real princess, Reika-chan?"

Reika hesitated. "Well, stranger things have happened," she said, as if her stomach didn't clench deep inside her.

What would Miyuki say right then if she knew where Reika would go to live that night? Well, Reika had decided not to tell any of the girls just yet. Their primary goal right then was to set Cinderella's story back to its correct route, and it would be easier for her friends if they could do it with a smile.

Still, it was hard to hang onto her own smile when she pictured the tearful goodbyes they would endure in just a few hours.

Reika hung her head. "I'm sorry."

Miyuki blinked, perplexed. "What for, Reika-chan?"

"That Joker ruined 'Cinderella'. I know we can redo the story, but…" She trailed off.

Miyuki patted her shoulder. "I'm just glad you're safe, Reika-chan." She searched Reika's face. "So he didn't hurt you?"

A ghost of a smile crept across Reika's face. "All things considered, he was a gentleman, even before — before I stabbed him with the other love arrow," she said, flushing a little.

Miyuki stopped short, her slippers giving a sharp, discordant clank. "Eh?!"

Yayoi, Candy and the mice looked up from where they waited.

Reika hesitated, then gave a small shrug. "At least I know he loves me."

Miyuki stared at her, aghast. Then her lip trembled, and her pink eyes blinked back tears. She stepped closer, wrapping Reika in a mournful embrace.

"Oh, Reika-chan."

It wasn't like when Akane fell for Brian, the English exchange student. No girlish gossip and giggles. No secret plans to help her confess her feelings. No offers to invite Joker to join group activities. And if the roles were changed, if Joker had used an arrow on a different Precure, Reika knew she would have stared at her ensnared friend the same way Miyuki had stared at her just then.

Reika patted her pink back and pulled out of the consoling hug.

"Let's give Cinderella a good temporary ending," she said. "Then you and the others can redo her story in the proper way. I won't… I can stay out of the book if you need me to."

But Miyuki shook her head, gripping Reika's hand. "We always need you, Reika-chan," she said vehemently. "You're a great Prince in _my_ book."

Reika gave her a grateful smile.

* * *

Hardly any time seemed to pass before Yayoi called to them.

"Cinderella! You only have five minutes until midnight!"

Akane and Nao scurried up Miyuki's dress to perch on either shoulder.

"You need to leave the castle before the magic expires!" said Nao.

"Don't forget to leave behind a glass slipper!" added Akane.

Miyuki broke into a grin, and Reika could not stop a smile of her own. She could not deny a sort of excitement hung in the air. Miyuki turned from Reika, holding up two determined fists.

"Okay!" she cried.

Akane raised a paw in kind. "Well then, let's start the scene where the Prince chases the departing Cinderella!"

Miyuki's whole demeanor altered to one of theatrical regret, and she took hold of her pink skirt.

"I'm sorry, Ouji-sama!" she sighed tragically, starting for the doorway, still with two mice aboard. "I've got to go."

Reika allowed her a small head start, waiting until Miyuki reached the arch before she acted. She cleared her throat, glad she had remembered to practice a little for this moment back before she had started the _Michi_ scroll.

"Oh!" she cried in dismay, spreading her hands in regal anguish. "Where are you going? Please wait!" she pleaded, reaching out for the vanishing Cinderella. She broke into a soft, noble run, following Miyuki into the hallway.

Yayoi fell into hurried step beside Miyuki. Reika deliberately slowed her pace to allow the two slow runners enough space for the famous escape. Soon Miyuki sped through the looming open door, and she and Yayoi spilled over the edge of the grand staircase.

Even though she started to pant from the exertion, Reika grinned to herself. Almost over.

However, her smile promptly vanished when she reached the top stair.

Not even halfway down the long flight of carpet stairs, three far-too-familiar people rushed up to meet them, blocking Miyuki's exit. Reika stumbled a little on the steps, remembering her frantic flight from the generals and their attempts to steal the Prince's hand in marriage from Cinderella. Miyuki and Yayoi halted, both tense.

The generals planted themselves in a determined barricade. Their unpleasant voices echoed right up to Reika.

"The ball is over?" demanded Wolfrun, his red braided pigtails looking disheveled.

Beside him, Akaoni clenched his enormous red fist. "But it's much too early for a Happy End, _oni_!"

Majorina flashed her mostly toothless gums in a challenging leer. "We won't let you through!"

Reika reached for the Smile Pacts in her pocket before she remembered — with a gulp — that her own was still with Joker. But she wouldn't stand by while her friends needed her. She hurried down the steps.

Fortunately, two brightly colored balls of fur leapt from Yayoi's shoulders, right into the wigs of Majorina and Akaoni. Both generals screamed, partly from surprise and partly from ticklish laughter.

Amidst the chaos, Yayoi stepped forward, pulling out her wand with the hand in a peace sign. "You're all going down with my magic!" she declared.

She waved the two fingers at the generals, starting an incantation.

Unfortunately, Majorina, still trying to free herself from Akane's attack on her head, plowed into Yayoi before she could finish. The poor girl spun like a top struck by a rock that sent it off kilter.

Reika reached the end of the flight and dove for her, dropping to one knee to catch Yayoi before she hit her head. Reika looked up in time to see Majorina and Akaoni knock into Wolfrun. As Nao and Akane leapt to safety, the three generals tumbled like a large snowball down the stairs to the next level.

Reika sighed with relief. So far, so good. But they still had work to do.

She glanced down at Yayoi, who still looked disoriented but seemed to be regaining her senses. Reika gave her a small pat on the shoulder.

"Are you okay?" she asked, smiling gently.

Yayoi blinked at her. Then her cheeks seemed to become a little pinker, and she mumbled a soft, "Yes."

From the floor, Akane shook a paw at them. "We don't need that unnecessary drama right now!'

Before Reika could ask what she meant, Miyuki grunted behind her, followed by a gleeful trill.

"Yes!" she cheered. "Now I'm done!"

Reika helped Yayoi to her feet, and they gathered around Miyuki, who had forcefully yanked one glass slipper from her foot. She laid the shoe on the red carpet, as if it had slipped off accidentally. Hopefully, that still counted.

Reika smiled at the clear slipper. They were so close.

"All that's left is for me to pick this up," she said.

Miyuki nodded happily. "And Cinderella leaves the castle by midnight!"

A noise arose below them. Reika spun to see Wolfrun raising his head from the heap of fallen generals.

"That won't happen!" he called up to the girls, and he reached for a pocket in his blue dress.

Before any of them could make a move to stop him, the Red Nose went up into the air — and the glass slipper began to glow beside Reika.

And it grew bigger.

Reika could only stare as the shoe sprouted striped arms with clownish gloves — and striped legs with curled clown shoes with red baubles on the points — and then two eyes with red stripes opened, and a large mouth grinned down at them, sticking out a long pink tongue.

"_Akanbe_!" cried the former slipper.

Reika took a step back.

"Just try and pick up that glass slipper, Cure Beauty!" Wolfrun barked a nasty laugh.

Miyuki glared at the Akanbe. "The Prince has to pick up the glass slipper or else this story becomes all messed up!" She pulled out her Smile Pact from her pink skirt. "Well then, _min-na_!"

Yayoi started, blanching. "Um," she squeaked out, her face breaking in a cold sweat, "I left my Smile Pact in the real world."

Miyuki jolted. "Eh?!"

Reika spun toward Yayoi, beaming. "Don't worry. I have yours right here!"

Yayoi whirled around to blink at her, surprised and delighted. "Really, Reika-chan? How?"

Reika evaded an answer by digging into her pocket. "Just one second—"

But her fingers had barely touched the top of the three-Pact bulk when the Akanbe lunged — right at Reika. All at once she found herself wrapped within thick gloved fingers, staring right into the menacing eyes and glittering teeth. Before she could cry out, it leapt straight up into the air.

"Well, looks like the glass slipper picked up the Prince instead!" crowed Wolfrun from below.

* * *

The world beneath her dangling feet shrunk at an accelerating speed. Reika's insides seemed to shrivel up the higher the Akanbe went. She switched from struggling to break free to clinging to its hand, praying it wouldn't drop her from this height.

Before they had reached the first tower, Yayoi had grabbed her broomstick and leapt onto it. By the second tower, Reika saw through squinted eyes the pink light of Miyuki's transformation into Cure Happy. Then up, up, up the Akanbe leapt from one level to the next. By the time it stopped, Reika's stomach felt like it would never unknot.

"_Akanbe_," the slipper said, sounding pleased with itself.

Reika struggled to open one eye to glare at the leering Akanbe. Despite the world spinning around her, she realized it had brought up to the tallest point of the palace. A dense forest spread itself around the castle, the dark treetops swaying in the breeze.

"Hold it!" came Yayoi's voice from one edge of the roof.

"We got you surrounded!" cried Happy from its other side.

Smirking, the Akanbe turned, facing the two girls as the third point in the combative triangle. It backed up to the ledge. Happy advanced on foot; Yayoi swooped closer on her broom — which prompted the Akanbe to hold Reika out over the edge. Yayoi pulled up on her broom handle, halting in the air.

"Don't even think about it," she commanded, but her voice wavered.

Reika gulped, gripping the giant index finger.

The striped eyes squinted with cruel delight. It raised Reika up — and flung her over the roof. Reika's gloved hands vainly tried to hang on, but the Akanbe slipped out of her grasp.

Reika plummeted toward the forest like a baseball.

"Reika-chan!" somebody cried, but Reika's blood pounded too hard in her ears for her to know who.

Yayoi zoomed over the roof after her, but Reika could already see she would be too slow.

_Will any of them tell my family what happened to me?_ she wondered as the treetops sped to meet her.

It should have been her last thought.

But a playing card swooped beneath her, enlarging to the size of a mattress, and Reika landed smack onto the black Joker silhouette.

Reika scrambled to grab the flat, oblong sides, torn between wanting to sit up to look for her beloved and wanting to hang on for precious life.

"Reika-chan!" cried Yayoi with relief, pulling up beside her. She grabbed Reika's wrist. "Are you alright?"

Reika jerked a weak nod and sucked in several deep breaths.

"_Akanbe!_" snarled the slipper from above. It leapt off the roof, curling up into a cannonball to plunge at them.

Yayoi shrieked, pulling Reika toward her broom. Reika tried her best to move her wobbling limbs.

But before the slipper could smash into them, a burst of pink light struck the Akanbe's side, knocking it off course. It grunted with pain, plowing right into one of the tier-levels of the palace battlements.

Cure Happy appeared on the nearest roof, arms poised for a fight. "You okay, Reika-chan?"

Reika shook herself and nodded. "Yes — but stop that Akanbe, Happy, quick!" she cried. "We need that slipper back before midnight!"

"On it!"

Happy leapt after the Akanbe, but it had recovered enough to get to its clownish feet. It threw itself into a glass window, breaking it, and charged out of sight. Happy bounced off a tower, springing right through the new opening.

"Oh no, you don't!" she cried, her pink pigtails flying out behind her as she disappeared into the castle. Promptly, the muffled sounds of cries and running feet echoed from within.

"Let's get you somewhere safe, Reika-chan," suggested Yayoi, nudging her arm. She glanced warily at the giant card, which remained stationary like a platform in one of the video games Yayoi liked to play. "I don't know much about that Joker, but I'm glad he was here."

Reika smiled at her before she looked around, scanning the palace for any sign of purple. Something flashed inside a corner tower near the front entrance, drawing her eye to a white mask staring at her from the window. Joker made no move to fly toward her, instead beckoning her with his hand.

She understood.

"Take me there," she directed Yayoi. "The generals can't know that Joker saved me." She swung herself onto the broom behind Yayoi, and in a few moments she leapt through the open window and into the arms of her beloved.

He pulled her close. "You're safe here," he murmured into her hair.

She wanted to bury her nose into his chest and soak up his warmth, but she remembered her other goal. She twisted out of his arms toward Yayoi, who still hovered by the window, now a little pink at the sight of the tender embrace.

"Yayoi-san!" she cried, withdrawing her friend's Pact.

Yayoi raised her hands. Reika tossed it. Yayoi caught it.

Unfortunately, they didn't see the Akanbe jumping from a balcony until it was two feet away.

Yayoi barely avoided its fist as it lunged for her. The Smile Pact slipped from fingers, plummeting to the sparkling castle below. It bounced off a turret and fell into the dense woods. Yayoi pulled back, agape.

"Yayoi-chan, I'm coming!" cried Cure Happy, jumping from the balcony. She shot toward the Akanbe like a cannonball, but the monster changed course in the air. It rebounded off the nearest wall and charged at Happy, giving Yayoi a chance to steer her broom after her fallen Smile Pact.

Reika gripped the window, watching after Happy and the Akanbe as they ducked and weaved about the spires. The long minute hand ticked closer to midnight.

"Hmm," murmured Joker beside her. "Our Akanbe could use a little help out there." He raised his hand.

Reika took his wrist before he could produce the snap. "You promised not to get involved in battles anymore."

He shot her a look of annoyance, but then he forced a strained smile. "So I did." He lowered his hand, nestling it against her waist instead. "The things I do for love, Ouji-sama."

However, almost as soon as he said this, Happy gave a cry. Reika spun in time to see the Akanbe's large hand knock her pink form out of the air and into the blue roof of a tower.

"Happy!" Reika cried, leaning out the window, wishing she could jump out and help.

A glint of light caught her attention from below, and Reika looked down to see Candy had summoned the Royal Clock. As the fairy inserted a Cure Decor, a ball of yellow sparkles erupted from its kuckoo-like doors, disappearing almost immediately.

Before Reika could begin to guess what Candy had in mind, the nightscape around the palace grew noticeably darker. Thick clouds gathered in the once clear sky, blocking out the shimmering stars. Then something pink fell from its misty mass, bouncing off the Akanbe's forehead. The slipper monster tore its eyes away from Happy to frown upward.

Then more pink things — which Reika realized at once were wrapped sweets — began to patter down from the sky, increasing in number. The Akanbe could not move away in time. A deluge of concentrated sweets struck it full on, engulfing it completely and knocking it from the air.

Reika blinked slowly, not entirely believing her eyes. "_Ame… no ame?_"

Candy rain?

"The Queen of Märchenland loves her puns," Joker commented.

Well, yes, that made sense, Reika reflected. If Candy knew the Sweets Decor could be used to create rain, then she must have seen the fairy queen perform that magic before.

Above, in the crater her impact had formed in the tower, Happy staggered to a standing position, shouting something at the Slipper Akanbe. Reika couldn't make out exactly what Happy said, but it was evident that she had built up enough spirit power for something amazing.

In the next moment, Happy's Smile Pact glowed on her waist. Her white Princess Candle with the pink stones appeared in her hand. Without missing a beat, she inserted the pink flower-shaped Cure Decor into its heart-shaped slot. She held the Candle to the sky, beseeching the starry Pegasus to lend her its power, and the transformation began. With an arrow of pink light, she rose into the air, and in seconds Princess Happy floated above them, swathed in the white gossamer robe and glittering golden tiara which resembled the Queen of Märchenland's halo-like crown.

"Amazing," Reika breathed, covering her gaping mouth. "The Pegasus can hear her, even in this world?"

Joker scowled. "She can reach Princess Mode by herself?" he demanded.

Reika touched her heart, and her stomach untied just a little. The Precure didn't need all five to summon the Pegasus. If she had to leave them, then her friends wouldn't be defenseless without Cure Beauty.

Princess Happy hovered in place, as easily as Joker could have done. She waved her arms with determined sweeps, and pink beams of energy appeared about her until she formed a heart with both hands against her chest.

"_Precure Cinderella Happy…_" She brought the spirit power above her head, and the glowing pink heart enlarged to an impressive size before she let it loose like a cannon. "_...Shower!_"

The Akanbe gave a single death scream, and it evaporated, leaving a pink flame where its Red Nose had been. As the monster returned to its slipper form, the powerful blast, meanwhile, sent the surprised Princess Happy flying backwards like a comet, far into the night. The noise of the battle seemed to hover for a moment.

Then a beautiful sound rang through the air — the midnight chimes of the palace clock.

Reika sighed, leaning against the window. Cinderella had escaped before the magic wore off, and Princess Happy's powers would keep her safe when she landed. At least that part hadn't been messed up.

She smiled tiredly at the carpeted staircase. The dot which was Candy excitedly scurried to the pile of sweets, digging through the indent the Akanbe had left behind. In a flash, she held up something too small for Reika to see from that distance, but she guessed the little fairy had retrieved a new Cure Decor. The generals were nowhere in sight: they must have disappeared after the Akanbe's destruction, per the norm.

Reika turned to Joker. "I just need to get the slipper."

"Do what you must," he said in an odd voice. He snapped his fingers, and Reika found herself back with her friends.

* * *

"_Minna-san_, did you want to stay in the palace tonight?" Reika asked as they trooped to the top of the staircase.

With her Smile Pact safely tucked in her costume's pocket, Yayoi tapped her chin, clearly tempted as she glanced about their luxurious surroundings. "Maybe, but I think I'll check on Miyuki-chan first. She might not want to spend the night alone in an empty house."

"She's kinda a scaredy cat," joked Akane good-naturedly before she ribbed Nao with what served as the elbow on her orange foreleg. "You can relate, right?"

"Oh, stop it," Nao shot back, but a friendly smirk split her furry green face.

"I don't mind staying with Miyuki," chimed in Candy, earning a smile from the others. She held a fairy-sized armful of the pink sweets as if they were her spoils of victory.

Reika nodded. "I'm sure the palace staff are back by now, so I'm alright here if she needs company."

"Only a few more hours to go!" crowed Akane, waving her little paw like a fist as Yayoi brought out her broomstick once more.

Reika watched them fly out of sight before she retreated into the palace, carrying the precious glass slipper with her up to the Prince's chambers. She did not feel the least bit sleepy; a near-death experience had a phenomenal way of waking a person up, especially as she held a tangible reminder of her would-be killer.

As slumber would no doubt elude her for the present, she might as well spend her time productively. The study adjacent to the Prince's bedroom had a lovely collection of books which Reika had skimmed through earlier, and any of them could shed light on this curious alternate dimension.

She opened the gold-lined door to find Joker sitting on the soft sofa, chin on his hands as he frowned at the flames within the immaculate fireplace. He waved his fingers slightly in greeting as she stepped in, but he barely looked at her. Even so, warmth filled her eyes at the sight of him. She wasted no time laying the slipper on the Prince's desk, and she took her place beside him, the private royal library forgotten.

"I could ring up refreshments from the kitchens if you wish," Reika offered.

"I don't have much of an appetite," he replied, still staring at the fire.

Reika nodded. "We've all had quite the evening, haven't we?"

Her eyes trailed over his sharp profile, pearl studs, and colorful hair. In a short time she would be back in the real world, where she would feel no guilt in kissing him and perhaps running her fingers along his interesting elf ears. After the swift way he had come to her rescue, a fresh affection awoke inside her for him, sweet and somehow distinct from what she had experienced from the arrow thus far. It was almost enough to distract her from the looming ache when she thought of beginning the next chapter of her life inside the Bad End Kingdom that very evening.

"Thank you again for saving me," she said. She gazed at him with warmth and said something she never thought she would utter to him: "You were my hero."

"Well, I didn't go through all that trouble with the arrows to lose you now," he answered absently, patting her knee. "Cure Beauty would've survived such a fall, but not Aoki Reika." He shot her a look. "Humans are noticeably fragile in that regard."

"Well, I'm fairly resilient, all things considered."

He grunted slightly before he shifted to face her. He hesitated before asking, "Reika, do you know many tales and legends with Bad Ends?"

Reika thought it over. "Well," she said, crossing her arms and leaning her face against her palm, "Miyuki-san would know much more than I do. I know traditional stories like 'Urashima Tarou' and 'Urikohime'. I also know 'The Pied Piper' and the sad version of 'The Ants and the Grasshopper'. Then 'The Honest Woodcutter', which had the god chop off the head of the woodcutter's dishonest neighbor. I believe there's also a version of 'Little Red Riding Hood' where the wolf eats her."

She searched her memory for more but drew a blank. Before the summer break, she had briefly quit every school club and social obligation to discover what she wanted for her own future. She had spent time observing her friends and their hobbies to get ideas, and she and Miyuki had enjoyed an hour in the school library reading fairy tales from around the world. However, most of those tales had happy endings if she remembered correctly.

She glanced at Joker as he nodded gravely. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, what you see as innocent cautionary tales, Reika, I know as neighbors and as the subjects of Pierrot-sama."

Her stomach clenched again at the thought of his homeland, but she tried not to let her discomfort show on her face.

"But it is as you said earlier," she said bravely. "Respect and obedience go a long way in the kingdom, yes?"

"In many cases," he replied, frowning down at his linked hands, "but there are other scenarios where neither help."

Reika flinched but drew in a breath to calm her quickening heart. Better for her to hear it now so that she could start mentally preparing than to be overwhelmed later.

"Name some," she requested.

He flexed his threaded fingers several times as if deliberating something.

"My mother was a descendant of European stories," he said. "She could trace her lineage through her maternal grandfather to Robin Goodfellow, or rather Shakespeare's version of Puck in _A Midsummer Night's Dream_."

Despite his solemn air and her own unease, Reika nodded at the familiar name. "I know that one," she said. "My cousin was in the theater club at her high school, and she played Hermia."

She remembered the chipper performance of the student who had played Puck. It was remarkable to think now she had been watching a depiction of a future in-law. Joker had certainly lived up to his forefather's legacy regarding love magic, she reflected wryly.

Joker nodded without looking at her. "Well, Mother's side of the family was largely of the British fair folk, distinct from the tiny _yousei_ fairies of Märchenland. They had a peculiar weakness of being unable to touch iron. After Pierrot-sama gave Father his leave to court her, Father threw out every scrap of iron he had in his lodgings, including what had been there since the first Joker's time."

"That was sweet of him."

"But problematic." His fingers tightened against each other. "The last day I saw them alive, we had gone with the empress to check on her herd of thoroughbreds who lived by the river. The _bäckahäst_ came up the bank, a beautiful white horse acting docile like it belonged to her herd. As soon as the empress tried to pet it, she could not remove her hand from its coat. My parents tried to pull her off, but they became stuck to it as well, and they all went into the water, leaving me behind."

Her jaw dropped, and Reika took his arm. He patted her hand, but he remained stiff beneath her touch.

"Want to know the real irony?" he said with a bitter grin. "Neither the empress or my father would carry anything made of iron as a sign of respect to my mother, but the _bäckahäst_ had the exact same weakness as she did. All it would've taken was just a ring or a necklace, and they'd all be alive today."

"Oh, Joker," she breathed.

"So, sometimes respect will not save you. When the universe decides to play _High Card_ will your life, there's a good chance you'll lose."

He turned, surveying her face. "When that Akanbe grabbed you, it was like watching the _bäckahäst_ drag my parents into the water all over again. Exactly like it."

"But you saved me," she said tenderly, squeezing his arm.

"This time," he replied. "What happens if you get attacked when I'm off doing my duties to Pierrot-sama? No one else in the kingdom would stick their neck out to save you. On the contrary, if they didn't see you as a tasty snack, they might decide to kidnap such a lovely girl for marriage."

Reika inwardly shuddered, but she lifted her chin, mustering her courage to say, "I can bear living in the Bad End Kingdom if I know I'm protecting you from Pierrot's wrath."

If she could remember that, if she kept telling herself that her voluntary imprisonment meant her beloved would see the next dawn, her heart could fly her over any disaster.

However, Joker shook his head. "You're not going to live there, Reika. Not the way it is now."

Reika sat up. "Joker, are you saying…"

He cupped his palms together, and pink appeared as he drew them apart. Reika touched her lips, gasping.

"Pierrot-sama will kill me for this if he finds out," he said, "but it has to be done."

He held the Smile Pact out to her.

"Selkie-san, I give you back your skin."

She stared, hardly daring to believe it, but he did not make it disappear again, so it had to be real. Tentatively, she accepted it, holding it in both hands like a precious gemstone.

_If he had done something this wonderful yesterday_, she thought, _I might have started to like him, even without the arrow_.

She gripped the Smile Pact, her throat tightening just a little, then took his hand. She wanted to say something, to thank him, but nothing she thought of could express the full wave of rapture which washed over her. She couldn't kiss him — not yet — but she wanted to do _something_ to show him what was in her heart.

Slowly, she pulled the glove from his spidery hand. She smiled slightly as he flexed his fingers, which now had his long black fingernails, as if they had been hiding in a magical pocket in the fabric. Then she removed her own glove and tenderly pressed her bare palm against his, threading their fingers.

His slender digits closed around her hand. "I suppose this will be goodbye then, eh?"

She looked at him in surprise and a bit of alarm. "Does it have to be?"

"Aren't we both going back to our normal lives?" he countered.

Reika doubted she'd be able to. No matter how much her head would try to return to her daily routine of school, clubs, friends, and family, her heart would worry for Joker, always wondering how he fared in the Bad End Kingdom. No, she would not abandon her claim so easily. She would not let Emperor Pierrot keep him without a fight.

She moved closer to him, still gripping his hand. She gazed up at his face and that fascinating mask — where did he get it? Why did he wear it? She wanted to know his secrets, and she wanted him to know hers.

"Would you do something for me, Joker?"

His eyes seemed to travel across her face before he formed a ghost of a smirk. "This should be interesting."

"I think you will enjoy it," she replied. "All I want is for you to spend time with me in the real world."

He leaned back against the sofa. "You live for danger, don't you?"

"We can do it in a way where the generals won't find out," Reika insisted. "You can come to my home and meet my family. Talk with Grandfather. Have tea with Mother and Father. Go for walks with me and my brother. Just… get to know them." She looked at him expectantly.

"Hmm." He narrowed his eyes in thought, his wide lips thinning.

"Just try," she pressed, gripping his hand. "For a month."

He released a breath through his sharp teeth. "I suppose I can do something like that," he said with resignation. "For you."

Reika bowed her head. "Thank you."

He straightened in his seat with a grin and quipped, "So, you already want me to meet your parents? That arrow _is_ potent."

She smiled sheepishly. "I hope you realize you were going to meet them eventually. Especially since" — she stammered a little — "since they'll be the tenth Joker's family. And your own."

He broke into his lovely chuckle. "Playing that card on me, huh? You rascal — I love it."

She ducked her head, blushing. "We have a long road ahead of us, but taking the perilous path makes our destination that much sweeter," she said. "Besides, to love someone is a fabulous thing."

If he could see what healthy love looked like, if he could see how a loving family interacted, then he had a chance at escaping Emperor Pierrot's looming influence. Reika knew she couldn't change him on her own; nothing could alter a person that drastically unless they desired it, even with magical arrows forged by a Greek god. However, with help from those who knew more about life and love, like her parents, Joker could come to desire that change on his own.

He tugged lightly on her blue side lock before he stood, slipping on his glove. "Perhaps I should get back to the real world before those three fools return to their base. I'm gonna _love_ seeing how they'll explain this afternoon's adventure when I ask them for a status report on Pierrot-sama's behalf."

She rose as well. "Yes, of course, but…" She fiddled with her sleeve. "Do you have time to stay awhile?"

He laid the back of his hand against his masked forehead. "Ouji-sama, so bold! I might just swoon."

"Well, it's occurred to me," Reika said slowly, "that in some versions, the Prince is so in love with Cinderella that he doesn't sleep and spends the whole night searching for her. If he happened to have a valet who could fly so expertly and teleport anywhere…"

"Then the Prince might stay by the valet's side the entire time," finished Joker, "and they might 'coincidentally' look everywhere but Cinderella's house first, right?"

"Well, it's his path to find his true love, isn't it? He won't leave any stone unturned."

"You make a fantastic point." He bowed low, touching his heart. "Then let's go exploring."

With the glass slipper secure in a box he conjured for her, she stepped into his waiting arms. He scooped her up like a bride, and she held fast to the slipper with one hand while her other arm secured itself around his neck. The window opened with a snap of his fingers; then Reika and her beloved went off into the night.

THE END

* * *

Big thanks to Anita10 of Ficbook for beta-reading and giving me moral support!

_Greek mythology_ — A lot of CdA lore has referenced Greek or Roman mythology. In Lesage's _Harlequin Orphée fils_ (1718), Harlequin is the biological son of Apollo, and he has to pull an Orpheus move when Columbine dies. In _Loves and Losses of Pierrot_ by William Griffith (1916), one of the first poems has Jove and the Muses "create" Pierrette. In _The Pierrot of the Minute_ by Ernest Dowson (1918) Pierrot falls asleep by Cupid's temple and falls in love with a Moon Maiden. Jonathan Swift has compared Harlequin to Momus, the god of satire. "What Momus was to Jove, The fame of Harlequin is now; The former was _buffoon_ above, The latter is Punch below."

_Puck_ — While CdA has had ties with fairy tales and children's books, it originated from the theater. Ergo, I have a headcanon that there's at least an additional realm in the SP universe where theater characters live. So, after Emperor Pierrot decided to start breeding his playing-card golems like poodles, he allowed the Jokers to scout through his homeland for spouses.


End file.
